Australia RU

•1 January 1970

Australia slideshow

What's on TV tonight: Catching a Killer and Love, Lies & Records

Thursday 7 December Catching a Killer: A Bullet Through The Window Channel 4, 9.00pm The most striking thing about Catching a Killer, Channel 4’s ongoing look at how police murder and missing persons investigations work, is the level of access involved. This film follows the fallout from the death of 19-year-old Suhaib Mohammed. It begins with the terrified 999 call stating “My friend just got shot” and ends with the eventual arrest of his killers. Along the way a complex story emerges of a naive teenager who drifted away from his family and whose death was a terrible case of being in the wrong place with the wrong people. It’s Senior Investigating Officer Mike Lynch’s last case before retirement and one he’s therefore doubly determined to solve, but as the investigation continues so his quiet fury over the way in which the dead teenager’s death is dismissed as just another gang death increases. As always though, it is the testimony of the victim’s family which lingers longest. “We knew he’d become more distant, more private, more closed off but I don’t think we realised he was hanging with the wrong people,” says his sister quietly. His devastated father simply notes: “His heart was very soft… he had big dreams.” Sarah Hughes Ross Noble: Off Road Dave, 8.00pm As fans of his previous Dave series (Ross Noble Freewheeling) can tell you, the comedian is a true petrolhead. However, even the enthusiastic Noble might have bitten off more than he can chew this time as he attempts the Scottish Six Days Trial, an event where the world’s best motorbike riders race 100 miles every day across unforgiving terrain. SH Love, Lies & Records BBC One, 9.00pm Kay Mellor’s enjoyable drama continues with Judy (Rebecca Front) sending Rob (Adrian Bower) a video of his fiancé Kate’s (Ashley Jensen) “moment of madness” with Rick (Kenny Doughty) – but can Kate get to it first? SH Blitz: The Bombs That Changed Britain BBC Two, 9.00pm This week’s focus is Scotland, where a series of Luftwaffe raids over three nights in March 1941 devastated a community, killing 528 people, including 15 members of the same family. For the tightknit society of shipbuilders and factory workers, the aftermath was devastating; many left Clydebank, never to return. SH Live at the Apollo BBC Two, 10.00pm Our host is the sharp, smart and amiable Nish Kumar. He’s joined by the laid-back Irish comic David O’Doherty and rising star Luisa Omielan, who recently rewrote her whole act in the light of her mother’s death from cancer. SH When Rock Arrived in North Korea: Liberation Day: Storyville BBC Four, 11.00pm This hugely entertaining look at how Slovenian art rockers Laibach became the first Western band to play in North Korea works largely because of the eccentric Norwegian director Morten Traavik’s bureaucrat-wrangling skills. The band themselves prove elusive, although the concert footage hammers home just how odd the occasion was. “There are all kinds of music – now I know there’s this kind of music too,” notes one bemused attendee. SH Born to Be Free: Saving Russia’s Whales Channel 4, 11.25pm No documentary is likely to make you angrier this week than Gayane Petrosyan’s bleak and brilliant film about the trade in Beluga whales. She uncovers the terrible fates of 18 belugas bought to Utrish Marine Station to be sold to aquariums across the world. SH Rugby Union: Varsity Match: Oxford University v Cambridge University Thursday, BBC Two, 2.45pm The 136th staging of the annual contest between the two universities takes place at Twickenham. Cambridge prevailed last year to end Oxford’s record-breaking six-year winning streak, and have the superior head-to-head record with 62 wins to their opponents’ 59. The match kicks off at 3.00pm. SH Austin Powers: The Spy Who S*****d Me (1999) ★★★☆☆ Comedy Central, 9.00pm The successful franchise remains nothing more than daft entertainment, but its puerile jokes and cultural referencing still manage to elicit laughs. The “groovy” spy with the wonky teeth (Mike Myers) has his mojo stolen by his arch nemesis Dr Evil (also Myers) and must travel back in time to the swinging Sixties to get it back. Black Sea (2014) ★★★☆☆ Film4, 9.00pm Written by Dennis Kelly (who co-wrote the musical Matilda) and starring Jude Law, this submarine thriller about a hunt for Nazi gold in a long-lost U-boat is less than the sum of its parts. However, a host of decent character actors – the best of whom, David Threlfall, steals the show – keep things buoyant and the set piece outside the sub, involving aquatic spacesuits and bars of gold, is pulse-pinging. 16 Blocks (2006) ★★★☆☆ ITV4, 11.35pm Steered brilliantly by director Richard Donner (Superman, The Goonies) Bruce Willis plays Jack Mosley, a detective who’s assigned to escort prisoner Eddie Bunker (Mos Def) to a Grand Jury hearing in this frantic buddy-action film. This may sound simple, but Mosley’s colleagues don’t want Bunker to make it – because he’s a witness in a police corruption case that could bring their worlds crashing down. Friday 8 December Claire Foy in 'The Crown' The Crown Netflix, from today Expectations could hardly be higher for the return of Netflix’s most lavish series. Although the spectacle and horror of the war have passed, the era of Anthony Eden and Harold McMillan is arguably more intriguing for being less frequently dramatised, and Peter Morgan explores the hypocrisies and compromises inherent in the politics of a nation whose global influence is in decline. Anton Lesser makes a ruthless, discreet McMillan, while Jeremy Northam is once again superb as Eden, a man not low on self-confidence yet forced to face his limitations as the Suez Crisis sees him outmanoeuvred. But the focal point of course is the royal family, and specifically the relationship between Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip: fundamentally solid in its early years, but now subject to considerable stress and strain as the couple drift apart over niggling doubts and suspected betrayals. Claire Foy and Matt Smith are magnificent in the lead roles, rising to the challenges of Morgan’s script to make plausible his educated guesswork and speculations over long-rumoured private affairs. The blend of spectacle and attention to detail remains striking. Gabriel Tate The Grand Tour Amazon Prime Video, from today Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May return for a second go-round of megastar guests, big-budget stunts in exotic locales, and parochial studio chat. The series opens with Ricky Wilson v David Hasselhoff in new segment Celebrity Face Off, and a comparison of a Lamborghini, a hybrid Honda and an electric supercar in a hill-climb race that – as anyone who recalls the headlines from earlier this year will know – goes horribly wrong. GT Judge Rinder’s Crown Court ITV, 8.00pm Two daytime television classics, one ancient and one modern, collide in this bizarre two-parter which sees Judge Robert Rinder, mediator of petty domestic disputes, presiding over a fictional case of arsenic poisoning. As per the original Crown Court, the jurors are members of the public. GT Jamie and Jimmy’s Friday Night Feast Channel 4, 8.00pm The chefs meet a childhood hero as Mark Hamill, soon to return to cinemas as Luke Skywalker, joins them to learn about making perfect roast beef and Yorkshire puddings, plus a Caesar salad and a seafood feast. GT Brunel: the Man Who Built Britain Channel 5, 8.00pm A giant of the Industrial Revolution, Isambard Kingdom Brunel had a curious private life to match his towering professional achievements. The ever-reliable Rob Bell begins his two-part profile with Brunel’s first major project, the Thames Tunnel. GT The Year in Music 2017 BBC Two, 9.00pm The BBC Music Awards follow in the footsteps of BBC Sports Personality of the Year and incorporate a review of the year into the bargain. Here, Claudia Winkelman and Clara Amfo look back on the past 12 months with contributors including Stormzy, Nile Rodgers and Liam Gallagher. GT Classic Album: American Pie: Don McLean BBC Four, 9.00pm McLean’s sophomore album is these days less venerated than other landmarks of the era (Blue, Tapestry, After the Goldrush); it is perhaps overshadowed by its monumental title song whose allusive, elusive lyrics offered an alternate history of rock ’n’ roll and eulogy for the hippy dream. Yet there was always more to it, as this diligent documentary asserts. GT Prisoners (2013) ★★★☆☆ More4, 9.00pm This drama, which centres on the abduction of two girls, is harrowing but it succeeds in sustaining its tension to the end. Hugh Jackman is cast into darkness when his six-year-old daughter is kidnapped. Jake Gyllenhaal is the detective in charge of the case, and the pair lock horns early on. What we are then presented with is a criminal puzzle and a very committed cast, which also includes Terrence Howard. Legend (2015) ★★★☆☆ Film4, 9.00pm Tom Hardy gives a solid, convincing performance as east London gangster Reggie Kray but his caricatured portrayal of twin brother Ronnie lets him down, and his inconsistent performance leads to an entertaining though muddled film. Emily Browning, however, gives just the right mix of defiance and despair as Frances Shea, Reggie’s put-upon wife. Watch out for some particularly gory scenes. Dead Calm (1989) ★★★☆☆ W, 9.00pm In her first big film role, Nicole Kidman displays pluck and vulnerability as Rae Ingram, a woman who loses her infant son in a car accident, and consents to a long recovery at sea, on a luxury yacht called the Saracen. Her husband John (Sam Neill) is an experienced naval officer and stand-up guy, and though he knows banishing Rae’s guilt and grief is going to be tough, he has no idea what shock therapy fate has in mind. Saturday 9 December John Noakes and Shep in 1978 Credit: HULTON John Noakes: TV Hero BBC Two, 5.30pm One quarter of the definitive Blue Peter foursome, alongside Peter Purves, Valerie Singleton and Shep, John Noakes was both its longest-serving presenter and one of its very finest. A gifted communicator, earnest when he had to be but more often game for anything, whether that be a laugh or a lunatic stunt. This affectionate profile of Noakes, who died in May, aged 83, after many years with Alzheimer’s, pivots on perhaps his two best-loved moments. First, there’s a climb up Nelson’s Column, sans ropes or safety harnesses, that was every bit as daft and dangerous as it looked and ample testament to his dauntlessness. That impish sense of humour is demonstrated by the notorious appearance of Lulu the elephant, who relieved herself on the floor before rampaging across the studio and over Noakes’s foot. Ever the entertainer, he milked both for all they were worth. His relationship with the series was an equivocal one and he reportedly resented his clownish persona, but this tribute skirts any controversy in favour of warm nostalgia, with familiar Blue Peter faces including Biddy Baxter and Lesley Judd recalling the man and his work. GT Premier League Football: West Ham United v Chelsea Sky Sports Main Event, 11.30am Having recovered from a goal down to beat Newcastle 3-1 last Saturday, with Eden Hazard helping himself to a brace, Chelsea travel across London to face West Ham United. The home side, who are currently in the relegation zone, will have taken plenty of positives from their 2-1 defeat at Manchester City last Sunday – namely, their defensive display. A similarly obdurate performance here and new manager David Moyes might get a share of the spoils this time. When these sides met at the London Stadium last season, West Ham lost 2-1. PS European Rugby Champions Cup: Toulon v Bath Sky Sports Main Event, 5.15pm Two wins from two reads the stats for both sides so far in this season’s European Champions Cup – at least one of these 100 per cent records will end at Stade Mayol. Bath come into this match on the back of a 42-29 defeat by Exeter, but before that they’d won four on the bounce, with Freddie Burns impressing at fly-half. After the autumn internationals, director of rugby Todd Blackadder now has an embarrassment of riches from which to pick: most notably, England backs Anthony Watson, Semesa Rokoduguni and Jonathan Joseph. Toulon, meanwhile, ended a three-match losing streak on Saturday when they beat Lyon 39-11. PS Strictly Come Dancing BBC One, 6.45pm The five remaining couples must perform two routines in this semi-final, and with barely a strand of lace between them, expect forensic criticism from the judges. Sunday’s results show will reveal the final four and there will be a performance from Craig David. GT Michael McIntyre’s Big Show BBC One, 8.20pm Wringing his contacts book dry, McIntyre ropes in guests including TV presenters Marvin and Rochelle Humes (taking part in the game Send to All) and pop rock band The Vamps for more fun. GT Witnesses: a Frozen Death BBC Four, 9.00pm and 9.55pm Even in this saturated market for foreign-language thrillers, Witnesses stands out for its lack of gimmicks – though without ever quite scaling the heights of The Bridge or Spiral. Here, Sandra’s (Marie Dompnier) pursuit of the killer takes her into a forest and an orphanage. GT The White Princess Drama, 9.00pm and 10.20pm The excellent Jodie Comer anchors the series to its conclusion tonight with another double bill, as Elizabeth of York (Comer) and Henry VII (Jacob Collins-Levy) struggle to maintain a united front. GT Peter Blake: Pop Art Life Sky Arts, 9.00pm While there is more to Peter Blake’s work than his cover for Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, music has played a crucial role in the development of his art and reputation. This engaging film digs deeply into a mutually fruitful relationship. GT Casualty BBC One, 9.20pm Christmas approaches, bringing annual trauma and discord for the A&E team. Tonight finds Elle’s (Jaye Griffiths) tearaway son Blake (Kai Thorne) going off the rails in response to her suggestion that she spend the festive period with her new boyfriend. Polly (Sophia Di Martino), meanwhile, continues to be unimpressed by Max (Jamie Davis). GT Through the Keyhole: I’m a Celebrity… get me out of here! ITV, 9.50pm The living, breathing definition of an acquired taste, Keith Lemon returns for a fifth series of the show once helmed by David Frost. Guests include Jimmy Carr, Myleene Klass and Tony Blackburn. GT Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990) ★★★☆☆ Christmas Gold, 9.40pm Whereas Joe Dante’s original monster hit was a deliciously dark horror flick (and staple Christmas hit) with touches of wry humour, this inferior sequel is essentially a straight-up, riotous comedy, replete with in-jokes and movie references. This time, the gremlins run amok in a Manhattan high-rise building called Clamp Tower, owned by John Glover’s Donald Trump-like mogul. The Cider House Rules (1999) ★★★☆☆ BBC Two, 11.15pm John Irving’s adaptation of his own 1985 novel features a fine Tobey Maguire and Michael Caine, who won an Oscar (only his second at the time). Irving won one too, for Best Screenplay, and there’s no doubt the story is moving, though this version – about an orphan (Maguire) and a doctor (Caine) who performs illegal abortions – is at times a bit saccharine. Paul Rudd co-stars; Lasse Hallström directs. The Drop (2014) ★★★★☆ Channel 4, 11.35pm Tom Hardy anchors this tale of simmering malfeasance as the tender of a Brooklyn bar designated as the drop for ill-gotten gains. Dennis Lehane adapts his own short story Animal Rescue, and makes a perfect team with Belgian director Michaël R Roskam, who gets a tamped-down, shuffling and beautifully calibrated star turn out of Hardy. Sopranos star James Gandolfini adds a burly gravitas in what would be his final movie. Sunday 10 December Jumbo with keeper Matthew Scott in 1882 Credit: BBC Attenborough and the Giant Elephant BBC One, 9.00pm Can we ever have too much Attenborough? It seems not, as right in the foaming wake of the fabulous Blue Planet II (which concludes tonight, see preview below) comes this absorbing, bittersweet tale of the world’s first animal superstar – Jumbo the elephant. It’s a sad story, really. Jumbo shot to fame shortly after his arrival at London Zoo as an orphan in around 1861, but he didn’t get much from the deal. As Attenborough says, his captive life was “troubled, fuelled by alcohol, terrifying fits of violence, a near mystical relationship with his keeper and a tragic end that seems hard to believe”. Which is more than enough to hold the attention for an hour as he joins an international team examining Jumbo’s preserved skeleton at New York’s Museum of Natural History. Attenborough also pokes about in archives at London Zoo, sanctuaries in the Maasai Mara and Tennessee, and Ontario where Jumbo met his very sad end, building as complete a picture of this magnificent creature and his global travels as has ever been assembled. All the while it spreads a positive conservationist message and gives thanks that attitudes are more enlightened now than in Victorian times. GO Premier League Football: Liverpool v Everton & Manchester United v Manchester City Sky Sports Main Event, 1.15pm & 4.15pm “Super Sunday” lives up to its hyperbolic billing, with two potentially exhilarating derbies. First up, we’re at Anfield where Liverpool, fresh from their 5-1 demolition of Brighton, host Everton, who found some form last week, following up their 4-0 win at home to West Ham United with a 2-0 victory against Huddersfield. Later, in the 4.30pm kick-off, José Mourinho and Pep Guardiola renew rivalries as second-placed United host leaders City at Old Trafford. Expect it to be tight. PS Britain’s Wildest Weather 2017 Channel 4, 6.30pm This year has not, so far, been as extreme as some but, given the number of smartphone-wielding citizen journalists, there’s plenty of jaw-dropping footage of every extreme weather event that occurred, among them devastating floods, tornadoes and hair-raising lightning strikes. GO Blue Planet II BBC One, 8.00pm This extraordinary series concludes with an undeniably depressing assessment of mankind’s impact on the marine environment. But David Attenborough, as ever, prefers to put the emphasis on hope. So there’s plenty of uplift too with stories of species brought back from extinction’s brink. GO Coastal Railways with Julie Walters Channel 4, 8.00pm Julie Walters heads for Cornwall on the Great Western route, recalling her childhood holidays in Torquay. She then boards a steam train at Paignton, hears tales of smugglers in Polperro and fills up on cakes in Penzance. GO Leonora Carrington: the Lost Surrealist BBC Four, 9.00pm This fascinating film tells the story of rebellious upper-class British artist Leonora Carrington, who worked alongside Ernst, Breton and Éluard in Paris at the height of the surrealist movement, yet died in 2011 all but forgotten in Mexico. Director Teresa Griffiths mixes interviews and biographical material with experimental animation and tableaux to bring Carrington’s work vividly to life. GO I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! ITV, 9.00pm Seventeen series in and the public appetite for watching celebrities endure humiliation and repulsion shows little sign of drying up. This year’s launch pulled in ITV’s biggest audience of 2017. The final will no doubt draw as big a crowd again. GO Babylon Berlin Sky Atlantic, from 9.00pm Three more atmospheric episodes of the gripping crime series set in the bohemian, political Weimar Germany of the late Twenties. Detective Rath’s (Volker Bruch) investigation uncovers dangerous evidence of a shocking military conspiracy. GO The Sky At Night BBC Four, 10.00pm As well as more stargazing from the Royal Observatory, Maggie Aderin-Pocock is in Norway to see the Northern Lights. GO Ben-Hur (1959) ★★★★★ ITV3, 2.45pm A majestic slice of Hollywood history, this Roman-era melodrama directed by William Wyler and starring Charlton Heston won 11 Academy Awards (not equalled until Titanic in 1997). It still makes for magnificent viewing. Set in 26AD, it tells the story of a Jewish prince who clashes with the Roman governor and ends up enslaved, desperately plotting his revenge. The Sorcerer’s Apprentice (2010) ★★★★☆ Channel 4, 3.00pm Jerry Bruckheimer gives the famous sequence from Disney’s Fantasia a fun, live-action reboot. Student Dave (Jay Baruchel) inherits Merlin’s powers, placing him in a power struggle between Balthazar (Nicolas Cage) and Horvath (Alfred Molina). Sadly there are just two scenes with broomsticks to link it to the original. Toby Kebbel is amusing as a stage musician co-opted by the forces of evil. Toy Story (1995) ★★★★★ BBC One, 3.35pm The idea of the first fully computer-generated animated film didn’t have those who had been weaned on the hand-drawn delights of Disney jumping for joy. However, with this beautiful tale, Pixar pushed animation to a new level – the premise, pace and emotion are all pitched perfectly. Whether it’s your first or 400th viewing, the story of toy cowboy Woody (Tom Hanks) and plastic spaceman Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen) is a joy. Monday 11 December Faye Marsa, Sarah Parish and Amara Karan in Bancroft Credit: ITV Bancroft ITV, 9.00pm With so many crime dramas clogging up the television schedules it can be hard for a new series to stand out and at first ITV’s latest four-parter seems unlikely to break the mould. There’s an ambitious female cop with a possibly troubled past (the always reliable Sarah Parish), a striving younger cop who is desperate to move up the ranks (Faye Marsay) and the usual crop of jobsworths and strivers (Charles Babalola is particularly good as the married fellow officer Marsay’s Katherine should be steering well clear of). It’s all perfectly well done with a solid script from Kate Brooke (Mr Selfridge) but it seems like nothing special. Then, three quarters of the way through this first episode, something genuinely interesting happens: Bancroft’s secrets are revealed to be very dark indeed just as Katherine’s cold case involving the break-in and violent murder of a young woman in 1990 starts hotting up. With the stakes suddenly raised Bancroft spins off into a dark tale of the lengths that people go to keep the past buried and the stage is set for an intriguing game of secrets and lies. Smart scheduling sees the rest of the story play out over consecutive nights. SH Street Auction BBC One, 11.00am Paul Martin returns with a new series of the surprisingly addictive show in which people band together to raise funds for a member of their community by auctioning off hidden treasures. The fun comes from the unusual objects unearthed from garages and attics. SH Nigella’s Christmas Table BBC Two, 8.00pm If anything is guaranteed to Nigella put into purring overload it’s Christmas. The food on offer includes roast duck with orange, soy and ginger, but this is really about mood rather than food. SH Paul Hollywood: A Baker’s Life Channel 4, 8.00pm Episode three of this genial series sees Hollywood looking back over his career and his time spent working at the Cliveden House Hotel in Berkshire. There’s also a festive get-together in Merseyside and some seasonal Danish pastries, which look delicious. SH The Art That Made Mexico: Paradise, Power and Prayers BBC Four, 9.00pm It’s always a pleasure to find a series that sheds new light on a subject, and so it is with artist Alinka Echeverria’s enthralling films about Mexico’s art. Of course, there are the key points: conquest, independence, dictatorship, revolution and figures such as Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo, but what the commentary gives us here is the context for both the history and the artists. This is true of this episode that looks at the relationship between art and power, colonialism and control while examining the enduring power of Kahlo’s work and myth. SH Handmade in Mexico BBC Four, 10.00pm The focus here is on Mexico’s celebrated Tree of Life sculptures, those gaudy, gorgeous interpretations of everything from the creation myth to the resurrection of Christ and the Day of the Dead. It’s a fascinating half-hour in which we see the amount of work and detail that goes into each piece. SH White Right: Meeting the Enemy: Exposure ITV, 10.40pm; STV, 11.05pm; UTV, 11.40pm; Wales, 11.10pm This intriguing-sounding documentary sees the Bafta-nominated Deeyah Khan (Jihad: A Story of the Others) investigate white extremism in the US. Khan visits white nationalist groups, attends a far-right rally and asks why this poisonous ideology is resurgent. SH The Black Swan (1942) ★★★☆☆ Film4, 2.35pm No, this is not the film about the ageing ballet dancer and the young ingénue; this is about high adventure on the seven seas. When Laird Cregar’s Captain Morgan becomes Governor of Jamaica, he promises to put an end to piracy. But things don’t go smoothly, especially when his assistant (Tyrone Power) kidnaps the ex-governor’s beautiful daughter (Maureen O’Hara). This was the final film of silent star Helene Costello. Mamma Mia! (2008) ★★★☆☆ ITV3, 7.50pm This musical comedy, directed by Phyllida Lloyd and set to Abba’s hits, is pure escapism. It’s naff, but that’s its selling point, as stars Meryl Streep, Pierce Brosnan and Julie Walters place tongues firmly in cheeks. At 59, Streep deserved more credit for doing the splits than for her role as a boho mother living on a Greek island whose daughter (Amanda Seyfried) tries to find out who her biological father is. Blood Diamond (2006) ★★★☆☆ Sky Cinema Greats, 8.00pm The diamond industry of Sierra Leone is the subject of this striking thriller. Djimon Hounsou stars as a fisherman forced to work in the fields, who finds and hides a rare pink gem. His life is changed when he meets Leonardo DiCaprio’s self-serving mercenary and Jennifer Connelly’s well-meaning journalist. DiCaprio was Oscar-nominated, but lost to Forest Whitaker for The Last King of Scotland. Tuesday 12 December Paul Ready, Diane Morgan and Anna Maxwell-Martin Credit: BBC Motherland BBC Two, 10.00pm Dispensing with the calamitous set pieces of previous episodes and instead documenting the quiet desperation of this ill-starred band of sisters (plus one brother), this superb, exhausting sitcom from a writing supergroup including Graham Linehan and Sharon Horgan has been an exquisitely painful delight. We join Julia (Anna Maxwell Martin) in an unusually good place, with everything running smoothly thanks to her new Australian nanny, Lyndsey (Sarah Kendall). The kids are clean and happy, the school run is easy, the fridge is stocked – but could she be too good to be true? Amanda (Lucy Punch) has gone to ground after the revelation over her threesome, while her hapless confidant, Kevin (Paul Ready), is desperate to avoid having to get a job. And, should all the mugging get too much, there’s deadpan Liz (Diane Morgan), negotiating tricky relations with her dismal ex and his new, pregnant partner. After an orgy of passive aggression and desperate people in denial, the façades crack, just a little. Happily everyone reverts to fundamentally appalling type just in time for the end of the series and a surely inevitable recommission. GT Judd Apatow: the Return Netflix, from today After 25 years away from stand-up, the comedy zelig whose fingerprints are over everything from Knocked Up and Girls to Freaks and Geeks and Bridesmaids returns for a special set in Montreal, recorded in July. GT Masterchef: the Professionals BBC Two, 8.00pm After the hopefuls have tackled an invention test and rustled up a dish dedicated to one of their inspirations, Marcus Wareing, Monica Galletti and Gregg Wallace eliminate another two contenders, leaving only six in the contest. GT The A Word BBC One, 9.00pm Joe’s (brilliant Max Vento) family comes together for an end of year show at his old school – tears, acrimony and reconciliation ensue in the conclusion of Peter Bowker’s finely wrought, well-performed drama. A third series should surely be a formality. GT Invasion! with Sam Willis BBC Four, 9.00pm While not quite attaining Lucy Worsley levels of gonzo history, Dr Sam Willis is an enthusiastic and knowledgeable host not above the odd stunt to prove a point. This second episode of a series documenting the incursions that have shaped our nation and its bloodline examines the differing techniques and goals of the invaders. There are the Barbary Corsaire pirates who settled on Lundy Island, King Louis the Lion, invited to invade and crowned by disgruntled nobles, and the Dutch forces that negotiated the Medway just a year prior to the Glorious Revolution. Further proof, if any were needed, that Britain is a mongrel nation and all the better for it. GT The World’s Most Expensive Presents Channel 4, 9.00pm Eyeball-melting opulence and appalling lack of taste do battle with considerable craftsmanship and class in this startling film featuring everything from gold-plated pushbikes to a poker set in alligator-hide case. GT Sports Personality of the Year 2017: The Contenders BBC One, 10.45pm; Wales, 11.10pm; Scotland, 11.45pm With reigning title-holder Andy Murray’s injury-hit year effectively ruling him out of contention, Anthony Joshua, Chris Froome, Lewis Hamilton, Jo Konta and Mo Farah will be headlining this year’s roster after another 12 months of outstanding achievement in British sport. The runners and riders are introduced tonight. GT Shane (1953) ★★★★☆ Film4, 3.45pm There are few Westerns that examine the depths of human emotions, but this film by George Stevens is one of them and has become a landmark of cinema. Shane (Alan Ladd) is a cowboy who finds himself idolised for the way that he handles himself in the face of a landowner’s heavies. The climax is a face-off between Shane and smiling, whispering, Oscar-nominated Jack Palance, as the original man in black. A must-see. Mr & Mrs Smith (2005) ★★★☆☆ 5STAR, 9.00pm A daft comedy thriller which is perhaps best remembered for being the film that introduced Brad Pitt to Angelina Jolie. They play a couple whose failing marriage is spiced up dramatically when each discovers that the other secretly works as an assassin. Let down by a weak script, the film is held together by the chemistry between its two leads. Vince Vaughn and Adam Brody co-star. Moonraker (1979) ★★★☆☆ ITV4, 9.00pm The 11th film in the Bond series, and the fourth to star Roger Moore as the dapper MI6 agent, involves the theft of a space shuttle. It’s one of the weaker Bond films and at times seems more of a comedy than a tense action adventure, but it’s enjoyably frivolous. Michael Lonsdale plays resident baddie Hugo Drax who pinches the aforementioned space shuttle to help along his plan to wipe out the world’s population. Wednesday 13 December Barbara Schulz in Vanished by the Lake Credit: Channel 4 Vanished by the Lake Channel 4, 10.00pm This haunting French crime drama centres on a teenage girl who goes missing at a festival. It’s hardly an original set-up, but much like last year’s hit Gallic import The Disappearance, based on an almost identical premise, the mix of youthful promise cut short and fierce small-town intrigue quickly compels. The girl in question is Chloé Delval (Charlie Joirkin), and as news of her disappearance spreads, memories of a similar 15-year-old case in which two other girls vanished at the same celebration are revived. Into the fray steps striking Parisian detective Lise Stocker (Barbara Schulz), who has returned home to look after her ill mother, but is soon swept up by the case as its personal implications begin to unfold. All of the hallmarks of the Nordic noir genre are present, from the evocative setting (here a Broadchurch-style coastal backdrop) to the close-knit neighbours with secrets to hide. Nevertheless, this opening episode is an effective tension builder and the human impact of the mystery – particularly on Chloé’s fracturing parents – is powerfully moving. Once episode one finishes, the full series will be available to watch on All 4. TD Mary Berry’s Country House Secrets BBC One, 8.00pm Mary Berry rounds off her tour of Britain’s stately homes at Goodwood House, where she is suitably gushing over its royal history and grand interiors. Berry is treated to a hair-raising lap of the nearby motor circuit and whips up a four-tier cake for the cricket tea. TD The Secret Life of the Zoo Channel 4, 8.00pm The plight of the endangered Javan green magpie is on the agenda as keepers at Chester Zoo attempt to breed youngster Permata with older bird Netuba. Elsewhere, a zebra battle breaks out when newcomer Okoth arrives. TD Peaky Blinders BBC Two, 9.00pm A burst of gunfire opens the penultimate episode of period gangster antics, as Tommy Shelby (Cillian Murphy) faces off against mafia honcho Luca Changretta (Adrien Brody). An army colonel, meanwhile, questions Ada (Sophie Rundle) about her Communist past. TD The Channel: The World’s Busiest Waterway Channel 4, 9.00pm The fallout from Project Nemo, the new underwater electricity cable being laid between Belgium and Britain, is explored. We follow the Nemo manager struggling to avoid costly delays and the fisherman whose catch is being compromised by the work. TD Royal Academy: Painting the Future Sky Arts, 9.00pm Virtual reality (VR) is predicted to become the go-to place for everything from entertainment to work. The Royal Academy is getting in on the act with a new exhibition which explores the potential of the medium. This film follows the show’s creation with the artists, including sculptor Antony Gormley, portraitist Jonathan Yeo and Turner Prize-nominee Yinka Shonibare, who are producing works that use the technology to trace the history of the body in art. TD David Hockney: Time Reclaimed Sky Arts, 10.30pm This tribute to David Hockney aims to get beyond the glamour that surrounds his reputation, and focus on the personal aspects of his work. Anecdotes, images and analysis of the pictures themselves highlight the individuality expressed in each period of Hockney’s career, suggesting a diverse oeuvre that defies classification. TD Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967) ★★★☆☆ Film4, 11.00am George Roy Hill directed two of the most popular films ever: Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) and The Sting (1973). But this indifferent Julie Andrews musical of the flapper era was first. There’s much to enjoy in the story of a naive woman who leaves her rural roots behind to seek fortune and romance in Twenties New York. James Fox, as a spiffing salesman, is a particular highlight. The Three Musketeers (2011) ★★☆☆☆ E4, 8.00pm Paul W S Anderson’s adaptation of Alexandre Dumas’ novel is faithful in plot – Porthos, Athos and Aramis (Ray Stevenson, Matthew Macfadyen, Luke Evans), and disciple d’Artagnan (Logan Lerman), are sent to retrieve the French Queen’s (Juno Temple) necklace. The tone, however, is half action-pantomime, half candy-coloured steampunk comic – fun but terribly slapdash. Poltergeist (1982) ★★★★☆ TCM, 11.15pm Director Tobe Hooper, who made The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, tones down the gut-churning horror but still ramps up the tension to nightmare levels in this Steven Spielberg-produced chiller. It has one of cinema’s most spine-tinglingly scary moments: “They’re here,” sing-songs a little girl kneeling before the TV. “They” are the spirits, at first playful then increasingly malevolent, who terrorise a suburban family. Thursday 14 December Lord Sugar Credit: BBC The Apprentice: Why I Fired Them BBC One, 8.00pm In the wake of last night’s excoriating interview round, and with this Sunday’s final rapidly approaching to decide who will win a £250,000 investment and the mentoring opportunity of a lifetime, Lord Sugar makes his most personal appearance of the series. Other than those brief to-camera inserts that roll out as taxi cabs ferry freshly defenestrated candidates away from Sugar Towers to forever dream of fortunes that might have been made, this is one of few occasions in each “process” when Lord Sugar appears on screen away from the wannabe tycoons and talking to viewers directly. And he makes the most of it with his trademark witty-gritty line in East End charm, although professionalism usually prevents him from really dishing the behind-the-scenes dirt on why he thought 16 of them worthy only of the tip of his boot. Instead he looks back over this 13th series identifying the key commercial and strategic errors that led to each of his firing finger decisions, and what ultimately marked out the two finalists from the others. It’s a lot to get through in an hour but, as series recaps go, it’s usually a hoot. GO Ashes Cricket: Australia v England BT Sport 1, 1.30am The enduring Ashes Down Under conundrum: wake up early to watch it or stay up late? The third Test, held at the WACA Ground in Perth, gets under way in the early hours of Thursday morning, with England hoping to bounce back from two demoralising defeats. Lose this one and captain Joe Root will have to surrender the urn to the Aussies. PS European Tour Golf: The Indonesian Masters Sky Sports Main Event, 6.00am It’s the opening day of the tournament at the Royale Jakarta Golf Club, where Thailand’s Poom Saksansin won the title last year. Saksansin shot an overall score of 270 to finish on -18, five strokes ahead of joint runners-up Masahiro Kawamura of Japan and fellow Thai players Phachara Khongwatmai and Suradit Yongcharoenchai. PS Amazing Spaces Snow and Ice Special Channel 4, 8.00pm George Clarke and his inventive sidekick Will Hardie travel to Norway’s remoter parts to check out why this small country on the edge of Europe punches above its weight in architecture and design. Could it be something to do with the cold weather, they wonder? GO Love, Lies & Records BBC One, 9.00pm Kay Mellor’s drama about the romance of working at a Leeds registry office delivers on melodrama, if not subtlety. In this penultimate episode Kate (Ashley Jensen) struggles to make a decision after Rob’s (Adrian Bower) surprise proposal. GO Blitz: the Bombs That Changed Britain BBC Two, 9.00pm The final edition looks at the horrific impact of German incendiary bombs, in particular one that set a church ablaze in Bristol in November 1940 and started a firestorm that ravaged the city’s historic centre. GO The Tunnel: Vengeance Sky Atlantic, 9.00pm Sky’s award-winning version of The Bridge (its milieu that of British and French police teams linked by the Channel Tunnel) returns for a third and final run. A pity, as Stephen Dillane as spiky detective and Clémence Poésy as his emotionally remote French opposite number make an appealing pair. This first of six episodes packs in plenty of action as the pair set out to find the link between a burnt-out trawler and a maintenance worker attacked by a plague of rats. GO Extraordinary Teens: School of Life and Deaf Channel 4, 10.00pm This absorbing film follows a year in the life of Mary Hare Boarding School for deaf pupils in Berkshire. Seen through the eyes of a 15-year-old about to undergo a potentially life-changing cochlear implant, this film gives a profound sense of the physical and emotional complexities of growing up deaf. GO The Russell Howard Hour Sky One, 10.00pm We’ve reached the penultimate episode of this excellent topical comedy series. It’s little more than an extended version of BBC Three’s (and later BBC Two’s) Good News but that’s exactly what fans (and Sky, who snapped Howard up) wanted and he has delivered, pushing his brand of highly topical, politically aware, positive reinforcement stand-up with aplomb. GO Life (2017) ★★★☆☆ Sky Cinema Premiere, 8.00pm Daniel Espinosa’s Earth-orbiting suspense flick was released less than two months before Ridley Scott’s new chapter in his Alien franchise, and bears many of the same hallmarks. It’s also a little bit Gravity. Ryan Reynolds is one of a crew of astronauts aboard a space station conducting research into life on Mars. In terms of entertainment, the film does its baseline job of getting you to chew your nails off. There’s Something About Mary (1998) ★★★☆☆ Comedy Central, 9.00pm There are bad taste jokes in abundance in this comedy from the Farrelly Brothers. Ben Stiller stars as Ted, a shy man who realises he’s still in love with Mary (Cameron Diaz, proving her comic abilities), the date he tried to take to prom 13 years ago. So, to track her down, he hires an oily private eye (Matt Dillon) who also fallsin love with her and sets out to keep the pair apart. Gone in 60 Seconds (2000) ★★★☆☆ Universal Channel, 9.00pm Nicolas Cage has top billing in Dominic Sena’s remake of the 1974 cult film – a mind-numbingly testosterone-laced ride. Cage and Angelina Jolie are among a crew of thieves who must steal 50 cars in 72 hours to stop the murder of Cage’s brother. It’s more than serviceable entertainment, plus car aficionados will have fun spotting the Cadillacs and Corvettes. Friday 15 December Paul, Andy, Cynthia and Diana in The Sweet Makers Credit: BBC The Sweet Makers at Christmas BBC Two, 9.00pm Following their enjoyable three-part series earlier this year, BBC Two’s Sweet Makers return for this one-off Christmas special looking at changing treats from Georgian times to the Twenties. As before, the show is a lovely mix of baking and interesting social history with Emma Dabiri and Dr Annie Gray, who fill us in on how each era viewed Christmas and how confectionery changes over time. The show’s highlight comes during the Victorian Era, also known as the moment when Christmas as we know it was invented, as chocolatiers Paul A Young and Diane Short, bespoke cake decorator Cynthia Stroud and sweet consultant Andy Baxendale recreate a Boar’s Head cake. “That’s the most bonkers thing we’ve ever made,” notes Young, looking at the finished result, which is rich in chocolate, beautifully decorated and featuring unnervingly glazed eyes. He’s right but it also looks fabulous, as do the intricate Twelfth Cakes, a speciality in Georgian times. The Twenties brings with it the wonderful news that before Terry’s invented the chocolate orange they introduced the chocolate apple to the world, before looking to the future and the invention of Lord Mackintosh’s Quality Street. SH Jean-Claude Van Johnson Amazon Prime Video, from today This delightfully silly new series sees Jean-Claude Van Damme as a retired action film star with a secret: he’s a special agent and he wants back in the game. It’s inspired mayhem anchored by a winning performance from the laconic Van Damme. SH Trollhunters Netflix, from today Guillermo del Toro’s inventive animation returns for a second series, and it features the voice of the late Anton Yelchin as reluctant hero Jim Lake Jnr. The story continues where the first series left off, and sees Jim adventure deeper into the Troll world to battle the leader of the Darklands. This series also features Mark Hamill and Game of Thrones’s Lena Headey. SH Judge Rinder’s Crown Court ITV, 8.00pm; not STV or UTV; Wales, 11.10pm Judge Rinder’s reboot of classic Seventies series Crown Court might lack the big-name actors of the original but its meld of real-life crime and courtroom drama is just as addictive. Tonight, the jury decides if James Byron (Rupert Young) murdered his wife. SH Jamie and Jimmy’s Friday Night Feast Channel 4, 8.00pm Sarah Millican is a brave guest of Oliver and Doherty – brave because it swiftly transpires that cooking really isn’t her thing. But Oliver manages to bite his tongue while showing her how to cook her favourite microwave meal from scratch. SH Have I Got News for You BBC One, 9.00pm The 54th series of the satirical news quiz comes to an end with the ever-reliable David Tennant in the host’s chair. It has been a patchy series, which was marked by a new low when Jo Brand had to explain why sexual harassment jokes weren’t funny to the male panellists. So let’s hope it goes out on a high. SH Roy Orbison: Love Hurts BBC Four, 9.30pm Roy Orbison’s three sons, Wesley, Roy Jnr and Alex, take centre stage to discuss their father in this emotional documentary. SH The Graham Norton Show BBC One, 10.35pm; NI, 11.05pm Prepare for Star Wars: The Last Jedi overload as John Boyega, Daisy Ridley and Mark Hamill join Norton on the sofa. Don’t expect any spoilers but there’s sure to be some nice eulogies to the late Carrie Fisher. SH Before I Go to Sleep (2014) ★★★☆☆ More4, 9.00pm Nicole Kidman and Colin Firth star in this uninvolving thriller based on SJ Watson’s twisty bestseller. Kidman plays a woman who, after suffering a head injury, has no idea who she is or who the man sleeping next to her might be (it’s Colin Firth, playing her husband). She keeps a daily video diary but starts to notice discrepancies between what she’s recorded and what Firth tells her. The Pledge (2001) ★★★★☆ Sony Movie Channel, 9.00pm A tense mystery directed by Sean Penn with a fine cast including Jack Nicholson, Helen Mirren, Robin Wright Penn, Aaron Eckhart and Vanessa Redgrave. Nicholson is a detective who has to handle a horrific case on the day of his retirement – the murder of a seven-year-old girl. He promises to bring the killer to justice, only to find that the case is far from straightforward. A powerful, unsettling film. Hyena (2014) ★★★☆☆ Film4, 11.15pm This violent thriller about corrupt drug-squad officers is very violent indeed, so be prepared to cover your eyes for some parts of writer-director Gerard Johnson’s film. Michael Logan (an intense Peter Ferdinand) is the leader of this special force, assigned to tackle drug trafficking among the Balkan gangs. Stephen Graham, as his dubious boss, is as reliable as ever. Above all, it’s a grisly exploration of the criminal mind. Television previewers Toby Dantzic, Catherine Gee, Simon Horsford, Sarah Hughes, Clive Morgan, Gerard O'Donovan, Vicki Power, Patrick Smith, Gabriel Tate and Rachel Ward

What's on TV tonight: Catching a Killer and Love, Lies & Records

Thursday 7 December Catching a Killer: A Bullet Through The Window Channel 4, 9.00pm The most striking thing about Catching a Killer, Channel 4’s ongoing look at how police murder and missing persons investigations work, is the level of access involved. This film follows the fallout from the death of 19-year-old Suhaib Mohammed. It begins with the terrified 999 call stating “My friend just got shot” and ends with the eventual arrest of his killers. Along the way a complex story emerges of a naive teenager who drifted away from his family and whose death was a terrible case of being in the wrong place with the wrong people. It’s Senior Investigating Officer Mike Lynch’s last case before retirement and one he’s therefore doubly determined to solve, but as the investigation continues so his quiet fury over the way in which the dead teenager’s death is dismissed as just another gang death increases. As always though, it is the testimony of the victim’s family which lingers longest. “We knew he’d become more distant, more private, more closed off but I don’t think we realised he was hanging with the wrong people,” says his sister quietly. His devastated father simply notes: “His heart was very soft… he had big dreams.” Sarah Hughes Ross Noble: Off Road Dave, 8.00pm As fans of his previous Dave series (Ross Noble Freewheeling) can tell you, the comedian is a true petrolhead. However, even the enthusiastic Noble might have bitten off more than he can chew this time as he attempts the Scottish Six Days Trial, an event where the world’s best motorbike riders race 100 miles every day across unforgiving terrain. SH Love, Lies & Records BBC One, 9.00pm Kay Mellor’s enjoyable drama continues with Judy (Rebecca Front) sending Rob (Adrian Bower) a video of his fiancé Kate’s (Ashley Jensen) “moment of madness” with Rick (Kenny Doughty) – but can Kate get to it first? SH Blitz: The Bombs That Changed Britain BBC Two, 9.00pm This week’s focus is Scotland, where a series of Luftwaffe raids over three nights in March 1941 devastated a community, killing 528 people, including 15 members of the same family. For the tightknit society of shipbuilders and factory workers, the aftermath was devastating; many left Clydebank, never to return. SH Live at the Apollo BBC Two, 10.00pm Our host is the sharp, smart and amiable Nish Kumar. He’s joined by the laid-back Irish comic David O’Doherty and rising star Luisa Omielan, who recently rewrote her whole act in the light of her mother’s death from cancer. SH When Rock Arrived in North Korea: Liberation Day: Storyville BBC Four, 11.00pm This hugely entertaining look at how Slovenian art rockers Laibach became the first Western band to play in North Korea works largely because of the eccentric Norwegian director Morten Traavik’s bureaucrat-wrangling skills. The band themselves prove elusive, although the concert footage hammers home just how odd the occasion was. “There are all kinds of music – now I know there’s this kind of music too,” notes one bemused attendee. SH Born to Be Free: Saving Russia’s Whales Channel 4, 11.25pm No documentary is likely to make you angrier this week than Gayane Petrosyan’s bleak and brilliant film about the trade in Beluga whales. She uncovers the terrible fates of 18 belugas bought to Utrish Marine Station to be sold to aquariums across the world. SH Rugby Union: Varsity Match: Oxford University v Cambridge University Thursday, BBC Two, 2.45pm The 136th staging of the annual contest between the two universities takes place at Twickenham. Cambridge prevailed last year to end Oxford’s record-breaking six-year winning streak, and have the superior head-to-head record with 62 wins to their opponents’ 59. The match kicks off at 3.00pm. SH Austin Powers: The Spy Who S*****d Me (1999) ★★★☆☆ Comedy Central, 9.00pm The successful franchise remains nothing more than daft entertainment, but its puerile jokes and cultural referencing still manage to elicit laughs. The “groovy” spy with the wonky teeth (Mike Myers) has his mojo stolen by his arch nemesis Dr Evil (also Myers) and must travel back in time to the swinging Sixties to get it back. Black Sea (2014) ★★★☆☆ Film4, 9.00pm Written by Dennis Kelly (who co-wrote the musical Matilda) and starring Jude Law, this submarine thriller about a hunt for Nazi gold in a long-lost U-boat is less than the sum of its parts. However, a host of decent character actors – the best of whom, David Threlfall, steals the show – keep things buoyant and the set piece outside the sub, involving aquatic spacesuits and bars of gold, is pulse-pinging. 16 Blocks (2006) ★★★☆☆ ITV4, 11.35pm Steered brilliantly by director Richard Donner (Superman, The Goonies) Bruce Willis plays Jack Mosley, a detective who’s assigned to escort prisoner Eddie Bunker (Mos Def) to a Grand Jury hearing in this frantic buddy-action film. This may sound simple, but Mosley’s colleagues don’t want Bunker to make it – because he’s a witness in a police corruption case that could bring their worlds crashing down. Friday 8 December Claire Foy in 'The Crown' The Crown Netflix, from today Expectations could hardly be higher for the return of Netflix’s most lavish series. Although the spectacle and horror of the war have passed, the era of Anthony Eden and Harold McMillan is arguably more intriguing for being less frequently dramatised, and Peter Morgan explores the hypocrisies and compromises inherent in the politics of a nation whose global influence is in decline. Anton Lesser makes a ruthless, discreet McMillan, while Jeremy Northam is once again superb as Eden, a man not low on self-confidence yet forced to face his limitations as the Suez Crisis sees him outmanoeuvred. But the focal point of course is the royal family, and specifically the relationship between Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip: fundamentally solid in its early years, but now subject to considerable stress and strain as the couple drift apart over niggling doubts and suspected betrayals. Claire Foy and Matt Smith are magnificent in the lead roles, rising to the challenges of Morgan’s script to make plausible his educated guesswork and speculations over long-rumoured private affairs. The blend of spectacle and attention to detail remains striking. Gabriel Tate The Grand Tour Amazon Prime Video, from today Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May return for a second go-round of megastar guests, big-budget stunts in exotic locales, and parochial studio chat. The series opens with Ricky Wilson v David Hasselhoff in new segment Celebrity Face Off, and a comparison of a Lamborghini, a hybrid Honda and an electric supercar in a hill-climb race that – as anyone who recalls the headlines from earlier this year will know – goes horribly wrong. GT Judge Rinder’s Crown Court ITV, 8.00pm Two daytime television classics, one ancient and one modern, collide in this bizarre two-parter which sees Judge Robert Rinder, mediator of petty domestic disputes, presiding over a fictional case of arsenic poisoning. As per the original Crown Court, the jurors are members of the public. GT Jamie and Jimmy’s Friday Night Feast Channel 4, 8.00pm The chefs meet a childhood hero as Mark Hamill, soon to return to cinemas as Luke Skywalker, joins them to learn about making perfect roast beef and Yorkshire puddings, plus a Caesar salad and a seafood feast. GT Brunel: the Man Who Built Britain Channel 5, 8.00pm A giant of the Industrial Revolution, Isambard Kingdom Brunel had a curious private life to match his towering professional achievements. The ever-reliable Rob Bell begins his two-part profile with Brunel’s first major project, the Thames Tunnel. GT The Year in Music 2017 BBC Two, 9.00pm The BBC Music Awards follow in the footsteps of BBC Sports Personality of the Year and incorporate a review of the year into the bargain. Here, Claudia Winkelman and Clara Amfo look back on the past 12 months with contributors including Stormzy, Nile Rodgers and Liam Gallagher. GT Classic Album: American Pie: Don McLean BBC Four, 9.00pm McLean’s sophomore album is these days less venerated than other landmarks of the era (Blue, Tapestry, After the Goldrush); it is perhaps overshadowed by its monumental title song whose allusive, elusive lyrics offered an alternate history of rock ’n’ roll and eulogy for the hippy dream. Yet there was always more to it, as this diligent documentary asserts. GT Prisoners (2013) ★★★☆☆ More4, 9.00pm This drama, which centres on the abduction of two girls, is harrowing but it succeeds in sustaining its tension to the end. Hugh Jackman is cast into darkness when his six-year-old daughter is kidnapped. Jake Gyllenhaal is the detective in charge of the case, and the pair lock horns early on. What we are then presented with is a criminal puzzle and a very committed cast, which also includes Terrence Howard. Legend (2015) ★★★☆☆ Film4, 9.00pm Tom Hardy gives a solid, convincing performance as east London gangster Reggie Kray but his caricatured portrayal of twin brother Ronnie lets him down, and his inconsistent performance leads to an entertaining though muddled film. Emily Browning, however, gives just the right mix of defiance and despair as Frances Shea, Reggie’s put-upon wife. Watch out for some particularly gory scenes. Dead Calm (1989) ★★★☆☆ W, 9.00pm In her first big film role, Nicole Kidman displays pluck and vulnerability as Rae Ingram, a woman who loses her infant son in a car accident, and consents to a long recovery at sea, on a luxury yacht called the Saracen. Her husband John (Sam Neill) is an experienced naval officer and stand-up guy, and though he knows banishing Rae’s guilt and grief is going to be tough, he has no idea what shock therapy fate has in mind. Saturday 9 December John Noakes and Shep in 1978 Credit: HULTON John Noakes: TV Hero BBC Two, 5.30pm One quarter of the definitive Blue Peter foursome, alongside Peter Purves, Valerie Singleton and Shep, John Noakes was both its longest-serving presenter and one of its very finest. A gifted communicator, earnest when he had to be but more often game for anything, whether that be a laugh or a lunatic stunt. This affectionate profile of Noakes, who died in May, aged 83, after many years with Alzheimer’s, pivots on perhaps his two best-loved moments. First, there’s a climb up Nelson’s Column, sans ropes or safety harnesses, that was every bit as daft and dangerous as it looked and ample testament to his dauntlessness. That impish sense of humour is demonstrated by the notorious appearance of Lulu the elephant, who relieved herself on the floor before rampaging across the studio and over Noakes’s foot. Ever the entertainer, he milked both for all they were worth. His relationship with the series was an equivocal one and he reportedly resented his clownish persona, but this tribute skirts any controversy in favour of warm nostalgia, with familiar Blue Peter faces including Biddy Baxter and Lesley Judd recalling the man and his work. GT Premier League Football: West Ham United v Chelsea Sky Sports Main Event, 11.30am Having recovered from a goal down to beat Newcastle 3-1 last Saturday, with Eden Hazard helping himself to a brace, Chelsea travel across London to face West Ham United. The home side, who are currently in the relegation zone, will have taken plenty of positives from their 2-1 defeat at Manchester City last Sunday – namely, their defensive display. A similarly obdurate performance here and new manager David Moyes might get a share of the spoils this time. When these sides met at the London Stadium last season, West Ham lost 2-1. PS European Rugby Champions Cup: Toulon v Bath Sky Sports Main Event, 5.15pm Two wins from two reads the stats for both sides so far in this season’s European Champions Cup – at least one of these 100 per cent records will end at Stade Mayol. Bath come into this match on the back of a 42-29 defeat by Exeter, but before that they’d won four on the bounce, with Freddie Burns impressing at fly-half. After the autumn internationals, director of rugby Todd Blackadder now has an embarrassment of riches from which to pick: most notably, England backs Anthony Watson, Semesa Rokoduguni and Jonathan Joseph. Toulon, meanwhile, ended a three-match losing streak on Saturday when they beat Lyon 39-11. PS Strictly Come Dancing BBC One, 6.45pm The five remaining couples must perform two routines in this semi-final, and with barely a strand of lace between them, expect forensic criticism from the judges. Sunday’s results show will reveal the final four and there will be a performance from Craig David. GT Michael McIntyre’s Big Show BBC One, 8.20pm Wringing his contacts book dry, McIntyre ropes in guests including TV presenters Marvin and Rochelle Humes (taking part in the game Send to All) and pop rock band The Vamps for more fun. GT Witnesses: a Frozen Death BBC Four, 9.00pm and 9.55pm Even in this saturated market for foreign-language thrillers, Witnesses stands out for its lack of gimmicks – though without ever quite scaling the heights of The Bridge or Spiral. Here, Sandra’s (Marie Dompnier) pursuit of the killer takes her into a forest and an orphanage. GT The White Princess Drama, 9.00pm and 10.20pm The excellent Jodie Comer anchors the series to its conclusion tonight with another double bill, as Elizabeth of York (Comer) and Henry VII (Jacob Collins-Levy) struggle to maintain a united front. GT Peter Blake: Pop Art Life Sky Arts, 9.00pm While there is more to Peter Blake’s work than his cover for Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, music has played a crucial role in the development of his art and reputation. This engaging film digs deeply into a mutually fruitful relationship. GT Casualty BBC One, 9.20pm Christmas approaches, bringing annual trauma and discord for the A&E team. Tonight finds Elle’s (Jaye Griffiths) tearaway son Blake (Kai Thorne) going off the rails in response to her suggestion that she spend the festive period with her new boyfriend. Polly (Sophia Di Martino), meanwhile, continues to be unimpressed by Max (Jamie Davis). GT Through the Keyhole: I’m a Celebrity… get me out of here! ITV, 9.50pm The living, breathing definition of an acquired taste, Keith Lemon returns for a fifth series of the show once helmed by David Frost. Guests include Jimmy Carr, Myleene Klass and Tony Blackburn. GT Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990) ★★★☆☆ Christmas Gold, 9.40pm Whereas Joe Dante’s original monster hit was a deliciously dark horror flick (and staple Christmas hit) with touches of wry humour, this inferior sequel is essentially a straight-up, riotous comedy, replete with in-jokes and movie references. This time, the gremlins run amok in a Manhattan high-rise building called Clamp Tower, owned by John Glover’s Donald Trump-like mogul. The Cider House Rules (1999) ★★★☆☆ BBC Two, 11.15pm John Irving’s adaptation of his own 1985 novel features a fine Tobey Maguire and Michael Caine, who won an Oscar (only his second at the time). Irving won one too, for Best Screenplay, and there’s no doubt the story is moving, though this version – about an orphan (Maguire) and a doctor (Caine) who performs illegal abortions – is at times a bit saccharine. Paul Rudd co-stars; Lasse Hallström directs. The Drop (2014) ★★★★☆ Channel 4, 11.35pm Tom Hardy anchors this tale of simmering malfeasance as the tender of a Brooklyn bar designated as the drop for ill-gotten gains. Dennis Lehane adapts his own short story Animal Rescue, and makes a perfect team with Belgian director Michaël R Roskam, who gets a tamped-down, shuffling and beautifully calibrated star turn out of Hardy. Sopranos star James Gandolfini adds a burly gravitas in what would be his final movie. Sunday 10 December Jumbo with keeper Matthew Scott in 1882 Credit: BBC Attenborough and the Giant Elephant BBC One, 9.00pm Can we ever have too much Attenborough? It seems not, as right in the foaming wake of the fabulous Blue Planet II (which concludes tonight, see preview below) comes this absorbing, bittersweet tale of the world’s first animal superstar – Jumbo the elephant. It’s a sad story, really. Jumbo shot to fame shortly after his arrival at London Zoo as an orphan in around 1861, but he didn’t get much from the deal. As Attenborough says, his captive life was “troubled, fuelled by alcohol, terrifying fits of violence, a near mystical relationship with his keeper and a tragic end that seems hard to believe”. Which is more than enough to hold the attention for an hour as he joins an international team examining Jumbo’s preserved skeleton at New York’s Museum of Natural History. Attenborough also pokes about in archives at London Zoo, sanctuaries in the Maasai Mara and Tennessee, and Ontario where Jumbo met his very sad end, building as complete a picture of this magnificent creature and his global travels as has ever been assembled. All the while it spreads a positive conservationist message and gives thanks that attitudes are more enlightened now than in Victorian times. GO Premier League Football: Liverpool v Everton & Manchester United v Manchester City Sky Sports Main Event, 1.15pm & 4.15pm “Super Sunday” lives up to its hyperbolic billing, with two potentially exhilarating derbies. First up, we’re at Anfield where Liverpool, fresh from their 5-1 demolition of Brighton, host Everton, who found some form last week, following up their 4-0 win at home to West Ham United with a 2-0 victory against Huddersfield. Later, in the 4.30pm kick-off, José Mourinho and Pep Guardiola renew rivalries as second-placed United host leaders City at Old Trafford. Expect it to be tight. PS Britain’s Wildest Weather 2017 Channel 4, 6.30pm This year has not, so far, been as extreme as some but, given the number of smartphone-wielding citizen journalists, there’s plenty of jaw-dropping footage of every extreme weather event that occurred, among them devastating floods, tornadoes and hair-raising lightning strikes. GO Blue Planet II BBC One, 8.00pm This extraordinary series concludes with an undeniably depressing assessment of mankind’s impact on the marine environment. But David Attenborough, as ever, prefers to put the emphasis on hope. So there’s plenty of uplift too with stories of species brought back from extinction’s brink. GO Coastal Railways with Julie Walters Channel 4, 8.00pm Julie Walters heads for Cornwall on the Great Western route, recalling her childhood holidays in Torquay. She then boards a steam train at Paignton, hears tales of smugglers in Polperro and fills up on cakes in Penzance. GO Leonora Carrington: the Lost Surrealist BBC Four, 9.00pm This fascinating film tells the story of rebellious upper-class British artist Leonora Carrington, who worked alongside Ernst, Breton and Éluard in Paris at the height of the surrealist movement, yet died in 2011 all but forgotten in Mexico. Director Teresa Griffiths mixes interviews and biographical material with experimental animation and tableaux to bring Carrington’s work vividly to life. GO I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! ITV, 9.00pm Seventeen series in and the public appetite for watching celebrities endure humiliation and repulsion shows little sign of drying up. This year’s launch pulled in ITV’s biggest audience of 2017. The final will no doubt draw as big a crowd again. GO Babylon Berlin Sky Atlantic, from 9.00pm Three more atmospheric episodes of the gripping crime series set in the bohemian, political Weimar Germany of the late Twenties. Detective Rath’s (Volker Bruch) investigation uncovers dangerous evidence of a shocking military conspiracy. GO The Sky At Night BBC Four, 10.00pm As well as more stargazing from the Royal Observatory, Maggie Aderin-Pocock is in Norway to see the Northern Lights. GO Ben-Hur (1959) ★★★★★ ITV3, 2.45pm A majestic slice of Hollywood history, this Roman-era melodrama directed by William Wyler and starring Charlton Heston won 11 Academy Awards (not equalled until Titanic in 1997). It still makes for magnificent viewing. Set in 26AD, it tells the story of a Jewish prince who clashes with the Roman governor and ends up enslaved, desperately plotting his revenge. The Sorcerer’s Apprentice (2010) ★★★★☆ Channel 4, 3.00pm Jerry Bruckheimer gives the famous sequence from Disney’s Fantasia a fun, live-action reboot. Student Dave (Jay Baruchel) inherits Merlin’s powers, placing him in a power struggle between Balthazar (Nicolas Cage) and Horvath (Alfred Molina). Sadly there are just two scenes with broomsticks to link it to the original. Toby Kebbel is amusing as a stage musician co-opted by the forces of evil. Toy Story (1995) ★★★★★ BBC One, 3.35pm The idea of the first fully computer-generated animated film didn’t have those who had been weaned on the hand-drawn delights of Disney jumping for joy. However, with this beautiful tale, Pixar pushed animation to a new level – the premise, pace and emotion are all pitched perfectly. Whether it’s your first or 400th viewing, the story of toy cowboy Woody (Tom Hanks) and plastic spaceman Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen) is a joy. Monday 11 December Faye Marsa, Sarah Parish and Amara Karan in Bancroft Credit: ITV Bancroft ITV, 9.00pm With so many crime dramas clogging up the television schedules it can be hard for a new series to stand out and at first ITV’s latest four-parter seems unlikely to break the mould. There’s an ambitious female cop with a possibly troubled past (the always reliable Sarah Parish), a striving younger cop who is desperate to move up the ranks (Faye Marsay) and the usual crop of jobsworths and strivers (Charles Babalola is particularly good as the married fellow officer Marsay’s Katherine should be steering well clear of). It’s all perfectly well done with a solid script from Kate Brooke (Mr Selfridge) but it seems like nothing special. Then, three quarters of the way through this first episode, something genuinely interesting happens: Bancroft’s secrets are revealed to be very dark indeed just as Katherine’s cold case involving the break-in and violent murder of a young woman in 1990 starts hotting up. With the stakes suddenly raised Bancroft spins off into a dark tale of the lengths that people go to keep the past buried and the stage is set for an intriguing game of secrets and lies. Smart scheduling sees the rest of the story play out over consecutive nights. SH Street Auction BBC One, 11.00am Paul Martin returns with a new series of the surprisingly addictive show in which people band together to raise funds for a member of their community by auctioning off hidden treasures. The fun comes from the unusual objects unearthed from garages and attics. SH Nigella’s Christmas Table BBC Two, 8.00pm If anything is guaranteed to Nigella put into purring overload it’s Christmas. The food on offer includes roast duck with orange, soy and ginger, but this is really about mood rather than food. SH Paul Hollywood: A Baker’s Life Channel 4, 8.00pm Episode three of this genial series sees Hollywood looking back over his career and his time spent working at the Cliveden House Hotel in Berkshire. There’s also a festive get-together in Merseyside and some seasonal Danish pastries, which look delicious. SH The Art That Made Mexico: Paradise, Power and Prayers BBC Four, 9.00pm It’s always a pleasure to find a series that sheds new light on a subject, and so it is with artist Alinka Echeverria’s enthralling films about Mexico’s art. Of course, there are the key points: conquest, independence, dictatorship, revolution and figures such as Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo, but what the commentary gives us here is the context for both the history and the artists. This is true of this episode that looks at the relationship between art and power, colonialism and control while examining the enduring power of Kahlo’s work and myth. SH Handmade in Mexico BBC Four, 10.00pm The focus here is on Mexico’s celebrated Tree of Life sculptures, those gaudy, gorgeous interpretations of everything from the creation myth to the resurrection of Christ and the Day of the Dead. It’s a fascinating half-hour in which we see the amount of work and detail that goes into each piece. SH White Right: Meeting the Enemy: Exposure ITV, 10.40pm; STV, 11.05pm; UTV, 11.40pm; Wales, 11.10pm This intriguing-sounding documentary sees the Bafta-nominated Deeyah Khan (Jihad: A Story of the Others) investigate white extremism in the US. Khan visits white nationalist groups, attends a far-right rally and asks why this poisonous ideology is resurgent. SH The Black Swan (1942) ★★★☆☆ Film4, 2.35pm No, this is not the film about the ageing ballet dancer and the young ingénue; this is about high adventure on the seven seas. When Laird Cregar’s Captain Morgan becomes Governor of Jamaica, he promises to put an end to piracy. But things don’t go smoothly, especially when his assistant (Tyrone Power) kidnaps the ex-governor’s beautiful daughter (Maureen O’Hara). This was the final film of silent star Helene Costello. Mamma Mia! (2008) ★★★☆☆ ITV3, 7.50pm This musical comedy, directed by Phyllida Lloyd and set to Abba’s hits, is pure escapism. It’s naff, but that’s its selling point, as stars Meryl Streep, Pierce Brosnan and Julie Walters place tongues firmly in cheeks. At 59, Streep deserved more credit for doing the splits than for her role as a boho mother living on a Greek island whose daughter (Amanda Seyfried) tries to find out who her biological father is. Blood Diamond (2006) ★★★☆☆ Sky Cinema Greats, 8.00pm The diamond industry of Sierra Leone is the subject of this striking thriller. Djimon Hounsou stars as a fisherman forced to work in the fields, who finds and hides a rare pink gem. His life is changed when he meets Leonardo DiCaprio’s self-serving mercenary and Jennifer Connelly’s well-meaning journalist. DiCaprio was Oscar-nominated, but lost to Forest Whitaker for The Last King of Scotland. Tuesday 12 December Paul Ready, Diane Morgan and Anna Maxwell-Martin Credit: BBC Motherland BBC Two, 10.00pm Dispensing with the calamitous set pieces of previous episodes and instead documenting the quiet desperation of this ill-starred band of sisters (plus one brother), this superb, exhausting sitcom from a writing supergroup including Graham Linehan and Sharon Horgan has been an exquisitely painful delight. We join Julia (Anna Maxwell Martin) in an unusually good place, with everything running smoothly thanks to her new Australian nanny, Lyndsey (Sarah Kendall). The kids are clean and happy, the school run is easy, the fridge is stocked – but could she be too good to be true? Amanda (Lucy Punch) has gone to ground after the revelation over her threesome, while her hapless confidant, Kevin (Paul Ready), is desperate to avoid having to get a job. And, should all the mugging get too much, there’s deadpan Liz (Diane Morgan), negotiating tricky relations with her dismal ex and his new, pregnant partner. After an orgy of passive aggression and desperate people in denial, the façades crack, just a little. Happily everyone reverts to fundamentally appalling type just in time for the end of the series and a surely inevitable recommission. GT Judd Apatow: the Return Netflix, from today After 25 years away from stand-up, the comedy zelig whose fingerprints are over everything from Knocked Up and Girls to Freaks and Geeks and Bridesmaids returns for a special set in Montreal, recorded in July. GT Masterchef: the Professionals BBC Two, 8.00pm After the hopefuls have tackled an invention test and rustled up a dish dedicated to one of their inspirations, Marcus Wareing, Monica Galletti and Gregg Wallace eliminate another two contenders, leaving only six in the contest. GT The A Word BBC One, 9.00pm Joe’s (brilliant Max Vento) family comes together for an end of year show at his old school – tears, acrimony and reconciliation ensue in the conclusion of Peter Bowker’s finely wrought, well-performed drama. A third series should surely be a formality. GT Invasion! with Sam Willis BBC Four, 9.00pm While not quite attaining Lucy Worsley levels of gonzo history, Dr Sam Willis is an enthusiastic and knowledgeable host not above the odd stunt to prove a point. This second episode of a series documenting the incursions that have shaped our nation and its bloodline examines the differing techniques and goals of the invaders. There are the Barbary Corsaire pirates who settled on Lundy Island, King Louis the Lion, invited to invade and crowned by disgruntled nobles, and the Dutch forces that negotiated the Medway just a year prior to the Glorious Revolution. Further proof, if any were needed, that Britain is a mongrel nation and all the better for it. GT The World’s Most Expensive Presents Channel 4, 9.00pm Eyeball-melting opulence and appalling lack of taste do battle with considerable craftsmanship and class in this startling film featuring everything from gold-plated pushbikes to a poker set in alligator-hide case. GT Sports Personality of the Year 2017: The Contenders BBC One, 10.45pm; Wales, 11.10pm; Scotland, 11.45pm With reigning title-holder Andy Murray’s injury-hit year effectively ruling him out of contention, Anthony Joshua, Chris Froome, Lewis Hamilton, Jo Konta and Mo Farah will be headlining this year’s roster after another 12 months of outstanding achievement in British sport. The runners and riders are introduced tonight. GT Shane (1953) ★★★★☆ Film4, 3.45pm There are few Westerns that examine the depths of human emotions, but this film by George Stevens is one of them and has become a landmark of cinema. Shane (Alan Ladd) is a cowboy who finds himself idolised for the way that he handles himself in the face of a landowner’s heavies. The climax is a face-off between Shane and smiling, whispering, Oscar-nominated Jack Palance, as the original man in black. A must-see. Mr & Mrs Smith (2005) ★★★☆☆ 5STAR, 9.00pm A daft comedy thriller which is perhaps best remembered for being the film that introduced Brad Pitt to Angelina Jolie. They play a couple whose failing marriage is spiced up dramatically when each discovers that the other secretly works as an assassin. Let down by a weak script, the film is held together by the chemistry between its two leads. Vince Vaughn and Adam Brody co-star. Moonraker (1979) ★★★☆☆ ITV4, 9.00pm The 11th film in the Bond series, and the fourth to star Roger Moore as the dapper MI6 agent, involves the theft of a space shuttle. It’s one of the weaker Bond films and at times seems more of a comedy than a tense action adventure, but it’s enjoyably frivolous. Michael Lonsdale plays resident baddie Hugo Drax who pinches the aforementioned space shuttle to help along his plan to wipe out the world’s population. Wednesday 13 December Barbara Schulz in Vanished by the Lake Credit: Channel 4 Vanished by the Lake Channel 4, 10.00pm This haunting French crime drama centres on a teenage girl who goes missing at a festival. It’s hardly an original set-up, but much like last year’s hit Gallic import The Disappearance, based on an almost identical premise, the mix of youthful promise cut short and fierce small-town intrigue quickly compels. The girl in question is Chloé Delval (Charlie Joirkin), and as news of her disappearance spreads, memories of a similar 15-year-old case in which two other girls vanished at the same celebration are revived. Into the fray steps striking Parisian detective Lise Stocker (Barbara Schulz), who has returned home to look after her ill mother, but is soon swept up by the case as its personal implications begin to unfold. All of the hallmarks of the Nordic noir genre are present, from the evocative setting (here a Broadchurch-style coastal backdrop) to the close-knit neighbours with secrets to hide. Nevertheless, this opening episode is an effective tension builder and the human impact of the mystery – particularly on Chloé’s fracturing parents – is powerfully moving. Once episode one finishes, the full series will be available to watch on All 4. TD Mary Berry’s Country House Secrets BBC One, 8.00pm Mary Berry rounds off her tour of Britain’s stately homes at Goodwood House, where she is suitably gushing over its royal history and grand interiors. Berry is treated to a hair-raising lap of the nearby motor circuit and whips up a four-tier cake for the cricket tea. TD The Secret Life of the Zoo Channel 4, 8.00pm The plight of the endangered Javan green magpie is on the agenda as keepers at Chester Zoo attempt to breed youngster Permata with older bird Netuba. Elsewhere, a zebra battle breaks out when newcomer Okoth arrives. TD Peaky Blinders BBC Two, 9.00pm A burst of gunfire opens the penultimate episode of period gangster antics, as Tommy Shelby (Cillian Murphy) faces off against mafia honcho Luca Changretta (Adrien Brody). An army colonel, meanwhile, questions Ada (Sophie Rundle) about her Communist past. TD The Channel: The World’s Busiest Waterway Channel 4, 9.00pm The fallout from Project Nemo, the new underwater electricity cable being laid between Belgium and Britain, is explored. We follow the Nemo manager struggling to avoid costly delays and the fisherman whose catch is being compromised by the work. TD Royal Academy: Painting the Future Sky Arts, 9.00pm Virtual reality (VR) is predicted to become the go-to place for everything from entertainment to work. The Royal Academy is getting in on the act with a new exhibition which explores the potential of the medium. This film follows the show’s creation with the artists, including sculptor Antony Gormley, portraitist Jonathan Yeo and Turner Prize-nominee Yinka Shonibare, who are producing works that use the technology to trace the history of the body in art. TD David Hockney: Time Reclaimed Sky Arts, 10.30pm This tribute to David Hockney aims to get beyond the glamour that surrounds his reputation, and focus on the personal aspects of his work. Anecdotes, images and analysis of the pictures themselves highlight the individuality expressed in each period of Hockney’s career, suggesting a diverse oeuvre that defies classification. TD Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967) ★★★☆☆ Film4, 11.00am George Roy Hill directed two of the most popular films ever: Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) and The Sting (1973). But this indifferent Julie Andrews musical of the flapper era was first. There’s much to enjoy in the story of a naive woman who leaves her rural roots behind to seek fortune and romance in Twenties New York. James Fox, as a spiffing salesman, is a particular highlight. The Three Musketeers (2011) ★★☆☆☆ E4, 8.00pm Paul W S Anderson’s adaptation of Alexandre Dumas’ novel is faithful in plot – Porthos, Athos and Aramis (Ray Stevenson, Matthew Macfadyen, Luke Evans), and disciple d’Artagnan (Logan Lerman), are sent to retrieve the French Queen’s (Juno Temple) necklace. The tone, however, is half action-pantomime, half candy-coloured steampunk comic – fun but terribly slapdash. Poltergeist (1982) ★★★★☆ TCM, 11.15pm Director Tobe Hooper, who made The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, tones down the gut-churning horror but still ramps up the tension to nightmare levels in this Steven Spielberg-produced chiller. It has one of cinema’s most spine-tinglingly scary moments: “They’re here,” sing-songs a little girl kneeling before the TV. “They” are the spirits, at first playful then increasingly malevolent, who terrorise a suburban family. Thursday 14 December Lord Sugar Credit: BBC The Apprentice: Why I Fired Them BBC One, 8.00pm In the wake of last night’s excoriating interview round, and with this Sunday’s final rapidly approaching to decide who will win a £250,000 investment and the mentoring opportunity of a lifetime, Lord Sugar makes his most personal appearance of the series. Other than those brief to-camera inserts that roll out as taxi cabs ferry freshly defenestrated candidates away from Sugar Towers to forever dream of fortunes that might have been made, this is one of few occasions in each “process” when Lord Sugar appears on screen away from the wannabe tycoons and talking to viewers directly. And he makes the most of it with his trademark witty-gritty line in East End charm, although professionalism usually prevents him from really dishing the behind-the-scenes dirt on why he thought 16 of them worthy only of the tip of his boot. Instead he looks back over this 13th series identifying the key commercial and strategic errors that led to each of his firing finger decisions, and what ultimately marked out the two finalists from the others. It’s a lot to get through in an hour but, as series recaps go, it’s usually a hoot. GO Ashes Cricket: Australia v England BT Sport 1, 1.30am The enduring Ashes Down Under conundrum: wake up early to watch it or stay up late? The third Test, held at the WACA Ground in Perth, gets under way in the early hours of Thursday morning, with England hoping to bounce back from two demoralising defeats. Lose this one and captain Joe Root will have to surrender the urn to the Aussies. PS European Tour Golf: The Indonesian Masters Sky Sports Main Event, 6.00am It’s the opening day of the tournament at the Royale Jakarta Golf Club, where Thailand’s Poom Saksansin won the title last year. Saksansin shot an overall score of 270 to finish on -18, five strokes ahead of joint runners-up Masahiro Kawamura of Japan and fellow Thai players Phachara Khongwatmai and Suradit Yongcharoenchai. PS Amazing Spaces Snow and Ice Special Channel 4, 8.00pm George Clarke and his inventive sidekick Will Hardie travel to Norway’s remoter parts to check out why this small country on the edge of Europe punches above its weight in architecture and design. Could it be something to do with the cold weather, they wonder? GO Love, Lies & Records BBC One, 9.00pm Kay Mellor’s drama about the romance of working at a Leeds registry office delivers on melodrama, if not subtlety. In this penultimate episode Kate (Ashley Jensen) struggles to make a decision after Rob’s (Adrian Bower) surprise proposal. GO Blitz: the Bombs That Changed Britain BBC Two, 9.00pm The final edition looks at the horrific impact of German incendiary bombs, in particular one that set a church ablaze in Bristol in November 1940 and started a firestorm that ravaged the city’s historic centre. GO The Tunnel: Vengeance Sky Atlantic, 9.00pm Sky’s award-winning version of The Bridge (its milieu that of British and French police teams linked by the Channel Tunnel) returns for a third and final run. A pity, as Stephen Dillane as spiky detective and Clémence Poésy as his emotionally remote French opposite number make an appealing pair. This first of six episodes packs in plenty of action as the pair set out to find the link between a burnt-out trawler and a maintenance worker attacked by a plague of rats. GO Extraordinary Teens: School of Life and Deaf Channel 4, 10.00pm This absorbing film follows a year in the life of Mary Hare Boarding School for deaf pupils in Berkshire. Seen through the eyes of a 15-year-old about to undergo a potentially life-changing cochlear implant, this film gives a profound sense of the physical and emotional complexities of growing up deaf. GO The Russell Howard Hour Sky One, 10.00pm We’ve reached the penultimate episode of this excellent topical comedy series. It’s little more than an extended version of BBC Three’s (and later BBC Two’s) Good News but that’s exactly what fans (and Sky, who snapped Howard up) wanted and he has delivered, pushing his brand of highly topical, politically aware, positive reinforcement stand-up with aplomb. GO Life (2017) ★★★☆☆ Sky Cinema Premiere, 8.00pm Daniel Espinosa’s Earth-orbiting suspense flick was released less than two months before Ridley Scott’s new chapter in his Alien franchise, and bears many of the same hallmarks. It’s also a little bit Gravity. Ryan Reynolds is one of a crew of astronauts aboard a space station conducting research into life on Mars. In terms of entertainment, the film does its baseline job of getting you to chew your nails off. There’s Something About Mary (1998) ★★★☆☆ Comedy Central, 9.00pm There are bad taste jokes in abundance in this comedy from the Farrelly Brothers. Ben Stiller stars as Ted, a shy man who realises he’s still in love with Mary (Cameron Diaz, proving her comic abilities), the date he tried to take to prom 13 years ago. So, to track her down, he hires an oily private eye (Matt Dillon) who also fallsin love with her and sets out to keep the pair apart. Gone in 60 Seconds (2000) ★★★☆☆ Universal Channel, 9.00pm Nicolas Cage has top billing in Dominic Sena’s remake of the 1974 cult film – a mind-numbingly testosterone-laced ride. Cage and Angelina Jolie are among a crew of thieves who must steal 50 cars in 72 hours to stop the murder of Cage’s brother. It’s more than serviceable entertainment, plus car aficionados will have fun spotting the Cadillacs and Corvettes. Friday 15 December Paul, Andy, Cynthia and Diana in The Sweet Makers Credit: BBC The Sweet Makers at Christmas BBC Two, 9.00pm Following their enjoyable three-part series earlier this year, BBC Two’s Sweet Makers return for this one-off Christmas special looking at changing treats from Georgian times to the Twenties. As before, the show is a lovely mix of baking and interesting social history with Emma Dabiri and Dr Annie Gray, who fill us in on how each era viewed Christmas and how confectionery changes over time. The show’s highlight comes during the Victorian Era, also known as the moment when Christmas as we know it was invented, as chocolatiers Paul A Young and Diane Short, bespoke cake decorator Cynthia Stroud and sweet consultant Andy Baxendale recreate a Boar’s Head cake. “That’s the most bonkers thing we’ve ever made,” notes Young, looking at the finished result, which is rich in chocolate, beautifully decorated and featuring unnervingly glazed eyes. He’s right but it also looks fabulous, as do the intricate Twelfth Cakes, a speciality in Georgian times. The Twenties brings with it the wonderful news that before Terry’s invented the chocolate orange they introduced the chocolate apple to the world, before looking to the future and the invention of Lord Mackintosh’s Quality Street. SH Jean-Claude Van Johnson Amazon Prime Video, from today This delightfully silly new series sees Jean-Claude Van Damme as a retired action film star with a secret: he’s a special agent and he wants back in the game. It’s inspired mayhem anchored by a winning performance from the laconic Van Damme. SH Trollhunters Netflix, from today Guillermo del Toro’s inventive animation returns for a second series, and it features the voice of the late Anton Yelchin as reluctant hero Jim Lake Jnr. The story continues where the first series left off, and sees Jim adventure deeper into the Troll world to battle the leader of the Darklands. This series also features Mark Hamill and Game of Thrones’s Lena Headey. SH Judge Rinder’s Crown Court ITV, 8.00pm; not STV or UTV; Wales, 11.10pm Judge Rinder’s reboot of classic Seventies series Crown Court might lack the big-name actors of the original but its meld of real-life crime and courtroom drama is just as addictive. Tonight, the jury decides if James Byron (Rupert Young) murdered his wife. SH Jamie and Jimmy’s Friday Night Feast Channel 4, 8.00pm Sarah Millican is a brave guest of Oliver and Doherty – brave because it swiftly transpires that cooking really isn’t her thing. But Oliver manages to bite his tongue while showing her how to cook her favourite microwave meal from scratch. SH Have I Got News for You BBC One, 9.00pm The 54th series of the satirical news quiz comes to an end with the ever-reliable David Tennant in the host’s chair. It has been a patchy series, which was marked by a new low when Jo Brand had to explain why sexual harassment jokes weren’t funny to the male panellists. So let’s hope it goes out on a high. SH Roy Orbison: Love Hurts BBC Four, 9.30pm Roy Orbison’s three sons, Wesley, Roy Jnr and Alex, take centre stage to discuss their father in this emotional documentary. SH The Graham Norton Show BBC One, 10.35pm; NI, 11.05pm Prepare for Star Wars: The Last Jedi overload as John Boyega, Daisy Ridley and Mark Hamill join Norton on the sofa. Don’t expect any spoilers but there’s sure to be some nice eulogies to the late Carrie Fisher. SH Before I Go to Sleep (2014) ★★★☆☆ More4, 9.00pm Nicole Kidman and Colin Firth star in this uninvolving thriller based on SJ Watson’s twisty bestseller. Kidman plays a woman who, after suffering a head injury, has no idea who she is or who the man sleeping next to her might be (it’s Colin Firth, playing her husband). She keeps a daily video diary but starts to notice discrepancies between what she’s recorded and what Firth tells her. The Pledge (2001) ★★★★☆ Sony Movie Channel, 9.00pm A tense mystery directed by Sean Penn with a fine cast including Jack Nicholson, Helen Mirren, Robin Wright Penn, Aaron Eckhart and Vanessa Redgrave. Nicholson is a detective who has to handle a horrific case on the day of his retirement – the murder of a seven-year-old girl. He promises to bring the killer to justice, only to find that the case is far from straightforward. A powerful, unsettling film. Hyena (2014) ★★★☆☆ Film4, 11.15pm This violent thriller about corrupt drug-squad officers is very violent indeed, so be prepared to cover your eyes for some parts of writer-director Gerard Johnson’s film. Michael Logan (an intense Peter Ferdinand) is the leader of this special force, assigned to tackle drug trafficking among the Balkan gangs. Stephen Graham, as his dubious boss, is as reliable as ever. Above all, it’s a grisly exploration of the criminal mind. Television previewers Toby Dantzic, Catherine Gee, Simon Horsford, Sarah Hughes, Clive Morgan, Gerard O'Donovan, Vicki Power, Patrick Smith, Gabriel Tate and Rachel Ward

What's on TV tonight: Catching a Killer and Love, Lies & Records

Thursday 7 December Catching a Killer: A Bullet Through The Window Channel 4, 9.00pm The most striking thing about Catching a Killer, Channel 4’s ongoing look at how police murder and missing persons investigations work, is the level of access involved. This film follows the fallout from the death of 19-year-old Suhaib Mohammed. It begins with the terrified 999 call stating “My friend just got shot” and ends with the eventual arrest of his killers. Along the way a complex story emerges of a naive teenager who drifted away from his family and whose death was a terrible case of being in the wrong place with the wrong people. It’s Senior Investigating Officer Mike Lynch’s last case before retirement and one he’s therefore doubly determined to solve, but as the investigation continues so his quiet fury over the way in which the dead teenager’s death is dismissed as just another gang death increases. As always though, it is the testimony of the victim’s family which lingers longest. “We knew he’d become more distant, more private, more closed off but I don’t think we realised he was hanging with the wrong people,” says his sister quietly. His devastated father simply notes: “His heart was very soft… he had big dreams.” Sarah Hughes Ross Noble: Off Road Dave, 8.00pm As fans of his previous Dave series (Ross Noble Freewheeling) can tell you, the comedian is a true petrolhead. However, even the enthusiastic Noble might have bitten off more than he can chew this time as he attempts the Scottish Six Days Trial, an event where the world’s best motorbike riders race 100 miles every day across unforgiving terrain. SH Love, Lies & Records BBC One, 9.00pm Kay Mellor’s enjoyable drama continues with Judy (Rebecca Front) sending Rob (Adrian Bower) a video of his fiancé Kate’s (Ashley Jensen) “moment of madness” with Rick (Kenny Doughty) – but can Kate get to it first? SH Blitz: The Bombs That Changed Britain BBC Two, 9.00pm This week’s focus is Scotland, where a series of Luftwaffe raids over three nights in March 1941 devastated a community, killing 528 people, including 15 members of the same family. For the tightknit society of shipbuilders and factory workers, the aftermath was devastating; many left Clydebank, never to return. SH Live at the Apollo BBC Two, 10.00pm Our host is the sharp, smart and amiable Nish Kumar. He’s joined by the laid-back Irish comic David O’Doherty and rising star Luisa Omielan, who recently rewrote her whole act in the light of her mother’s death from cancer. SH When Rock Arrived in North Korea: Liberation Day: Storyville BBC Four, 11.00pm This hugely entertaining look at how Slovenian art rockers Laibach became the first Western band to play in North Korea works largely because of the eccentric Norwegian director Morten Traavik’s bureaucrat-wrangling skills. The band themselves prove elusive, although the concert footage hammers home just how odd the occasion was. “There are all kinds of music – now I know there’s this kind of music too,” notes one bemused attendee. SH Born to Be Free: Saving Russia’s Whales Channel 4, 11.25pm No documentary is likely to make you angrier this week than Gayane Petrosyan’s bleak and brilliant film about the trade in Beluga whales. She uncovers the terrible fates of 18 belugas bought to Utrish Marine Station to be sold to aquariums across the world. SH Rugby Union: Varsity Match: Oxford University v Cambridge University Thursday, BBC Two, 2.45pm The 136th staging of the annual contest between the two universities takes place at Twickenham. Cambridge prevailed last year to end Oxford’s record-breaking six-year winning streak, and have the superior head-to-head record with 62 wins to their opponents’ 59. The match kicks off at 3.00pm. SH Austin Powers: The Spy Who S*****d Me (1999) ★★★☆☆ Comedy Central, 9.00pm The successful franchise remains nothing more than daft entertainment, but its puerile jokes and cultural referencing still manage to elicit laughs. The “groovy” spy with the wonky teeth (Mike Myers) has his mojo stolen by his arch nemesis Dr Evil (also Myers) and must travel back in time to the swinging Sixties to get it back. Black Sea (2014) ★★★☆☆ Film4, 9.00pm Written by Dennis Kelly (who co-wrote the musical Matilda) and starring Jude Law, this submarine thriller about a hunt for Nazi gold in a long-lost U-boat is less than the sum of its parts. However, a host of decent character actors – the best of whom, David Threlfall, steals the show – keep things buoyant and the set piece outside the sub, involving aquatic spacesuits and bars of gold, is pulse-pinging. 16 Blocks (2006) ★★★☆☆ ITV4, 11.35pm Steered brilliantly by director Richard Donner (Superman, The Goonies) Bruce Willis plays Jack Mosley, a detective who’s assigned to escort prisoner Eddie Bunker (Mos Def) to a Grand Jury hearing in this frantic buddy-action film. This may sound simple, but Mosley’s colleagues don’t want Bunker to make it – because he’s a witness in a police corruption case that could bring their worlds crashing down. Friday 8 December Claire Foy in 'The Crown' The Crown Netflix, from today Expectations could hardly be higher for the return of Netflix’s most lavish series. Although the spectacle and horror of the war have passed, the era of Anthony Eden and Harold McMillan is arguably more intriguing for being less frequently dramatised, and Peter Morgan explores the hypocrisies and compromises inherent in the politics of a nation whose global influence is in decline. Anton Lesser makes a ruthless, discreet McMillan, while Jeremy Northam is once again superb as Eden, a man not low on self-confidence yet forced to face his limitations as the Suez Crisis sees him outmanoeuvred. But the focal point of course is the royal family, and specifically the relationship between Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip: fundamentally solid in its early years, but now subject to considerable stress and strain as the couple drift apart over niggling doubts and suspected betrayals. Claire Foy and Matt Smith are magnificent in the lead roles, rising to the challenges of Morgan’s script to make plausible his educated guesswork and speculations over long-rumoured private affairs. The blend of spectacle and attention to detail remains striking. Gabriel Tate The Grand Tour Amazon Prime Video, from today Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May return for a second go-round of megastar guests, big-budget stunts in exotic locales, and parochial studio chat. The series opens with Ricky Wilson v David Hasselhoff in new segment Celebrity Face Off, and a comparison of a Lamborghini, a hybrid Honda and an electric supercar in a hill-climb race that – as anyone who recalls the headlines from earlier this year will know – goes horribly wrong. GT Judge Rinder’s Crown Court ITV, 8.00pm Two daytime television classics, one ancient and one modern, collide in this bizarre two-parter which sees Judge Robert Rinder, mediator of petty domestic disputes, presiding over a fictional case of arsenic poisoning. As per the original Crown Court, the jurors are members of the public. GT Jamie and Jimmy’s Friday Night Feast Channel 4, 8.00pm The chefs meet a childhood hero as Mark Hamill, soon to return to cinemas as Luke Skywalker, joins them to learn about making perfect roast beef and Yorkshire puddings, plus a Caesar salad and a seafood feast. GT Brunel: the Man Who Built Britain Channel 5, 8.00pm A giant of the Industrial Revolution, Isambard Kingdom Brunel had a curious private life to match his towering professional achievements. The ever-reliable Rob Bell begins his two-part profile with Brunel’s first major project, the Thames Tunnel. GT The Year in Music 2017 BBC Two, 9.00pm The BBC Music Awards follow in the footsteps of BBC Sports Personality of the Year and incorporate a review of the year into the bargain. Here, Claudia Winkelman and Clara Amfo look back on the past 12 months with contributors including Stormzy, Nile Rodgers and Liam Gallagher. GT Classic Album: American Pie: Don McLean BBC Four, 9.00pm McLean’s sophomore album is these days less venerated than other landmarks of the era (Blue, Tapestry, After the Goldrush); it is perhaps overshadowed by its monumental title song whose allusive, elusive lyrics offered an alternate history of rock ’n’ roll and eulogy for the hippy dream. Yet there was always more to it, as this diligent documentary asserts. GT Prisoners (2013) ★★★☆☆ More4, 9.00pm This drama, which centres on the abduction of two girls, is harrowing but it succeeds in sustaining its tension to the end. Hugh Jackman is cast into darkness when his six-year-old daughter is kidnapped. Jake Gyllenhaal is the detective in charge of the case, and the pair lock horns early on. What we are then presented with is a criminal puzzle and a very committed cast, which also includes Terrence Howard. Legend (2015) ★★★☆☆ Film4, 9.00pm Tom Hardy gives a solid, convincing performance as east London gangster Reggie Kray but his caricatured portrayal of twin brother Ronnie lets him down, and his inconsistent performance leads to an entertaining though muddled film. Emily Browning, however, gives just the right mix of defiance and despair as Frances Shea, Reggie’s put-upon wife. Watch out for some particularly gory scenes. Dead Calm (1989) ★★★☆☆ W, 9.00pm In her first big film role, Nicole Kidman displays pluck and vulnerability as Rae Ingram, a woman who loses her infant son in a car accident, and consents to a long recovery at sea, on a luxury yacht called the Saracen. Her husband John (Sam Neill) is an experienced naval officer and stand-up guy, and though he knows banishing Rae’s guilt and grief is going to be tough, he has no idea what shock therapy fate has in mind. Saturday 9 December John Noakes and Shep in 1978 Credit: HULTON John Noakes: TV Hero BBC Two, 5.30pm One quarter of the definitive Blue Peter foursome, alongside Peter Purves, Valerie Singleton and Shep, John Noakes was both its longest-serving presenter and one of its very finest. A gifted communicator, earnest when he had to be but more often game for anything, whether that be a laugh or a lunatic stunt. This affectionate profile of Noakes, who died in May, aged 83, after many years with Alzheimer’s, pivots on perhaps his two best-loved moments. First, there’s a climb up Nelson’s Column, sans ropes or safety harnesses, that was every bit as daft and dangerous as it looked and ample testament to his dauntlessness. That impish sense of humour is demonstrated by the notorious appearance of Lulu the elephant, who relieved herself on the floor before rampaging across the studio and over Noakes’s foot. Ever the entertainer, he milked both for all they were worth. His relationship with the series was an equivocal one and he reportedly resented his clownish persona, but this tribute skirts any controversy in favour of warm nostalgia, with familiar Blue Peter faces including Biddy Baxter and Lesley Judd recalling the man and his work. GT Premier League Football: West Ham United v Chelsea Sky Sports Main Event, 11.30am Having recovered from a goal down to beat Newcastle 3-1 last Saturday, with Eden Hazard helping himself to a brace, Chelsea travel across London to face West Ham United. The home side, who are currently in the relegation zone, will have taken plenty of positives from their 2-1 defeat at Manchester City last Sunday – namely, their defensive display. A similarly obdurate performance here and new manager David Moyes might get a share of the spoils this time. When these sides met at the London Stadium last season, West Ham lost 2-1. PS European Rugby Champions Cup: Toulon v Bath Sky Sports Main Event, 5.15pm Two wins from two reads the stats for both sides so far in this season’s European Champions Cup – at least one of these 100 per cent records will end at Stade Mayol. Bath come into this match on the back of a 42-29 defeat by Exeter, but before that they’d won four on the bounce, with Freddie Burns impressing at fly-half. After the autumn internationals, director of rugby Todd Blackadder now has an embarrassment of riches from which to pick: most notably, England backs Anthony Watson, Semesa Rokoduguni and Jonathan Joseph. Toulon, meanwhile, ended a three-match losing streak on Saturday when they beat Lyon 39-11. PS Strictly Come Dancing BBC One, 6.45pm The five remaining couples must perform two routines in this semi-final, and with barely a strand of lace between them, expect forensic criticism from the judges. Sunday’s results show will reveal the final four and there will be a performance from Craig David. GT Michael McIntyre’s Big Show BBC One, 8.20pm Wringing his contacts book dry, McIntyre ropes in guests including TV presenters Marvin and Rochelle Humes (taking part in the game Send to All) and pop rock band The Vamps for more fun. GT Witnesses: a Frozen Death BBC Four, 9.00pm and 9.55pm Even in this saturated market for foreign-language thrillers, Witnesses stands out for its lack of gimmicks – though without ever quite scaling the heights of The Bridge or Spiral. Here, Sandra’s (Marie Dompnier) pursuit of the killer takes her into a forest and an orphanage. GT The White Princess Drama, 9.00pm and 10.20pm The excellent Jodie Comer anchors the series to its conclusion tonight with another double bill, as Elizabeth of York (Comer) and Henry VII (Jacob Collins-Levy) struggle to maintain a united front. GT Peter Blake: Pop Art Life Sky Arts, 9.00pm While there is more to Peter Blake’s work than his cover for Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, music has played a crucial role in the development of his art and reputation. This engaging film digs deeply into a mutually fruitful relationship. GT Casualty BBC One, 9.20pm Christmas approaches, bringing annual trauma and discord for the A&E team. Tonight finds Elle’s (Jaye Griffiths) tearaway son Blake (Kai Thorne) going off the rails in response to her suggestion that she spend the festive period with her new boyfriend. Polly (Sophia Di Martino), meanwhile, continues to be unimpressed by Max (Jamie Davis). GT Through the Keyhole: I’m a Celebrity… get me out of here! ITV, 9.50pm The living, breathing definition of an acquired taste, Keith Lemon returns for a fifth series of the show once helmed by David Frost. Guests include Jimmy Carr, Myleene Klass and Tony Blackburn. GT Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990) ★★★☆☆ Christmas Gold, 9.40pm Whereas Joe Dante’s original monster hit was a deliciously dark horror flick (and staple Christmas hit) with touches of wry humour, this inferior sequel is essentially a straight-up, riotous comedy, replete with in-jokes and movie references. This time, the gremlins run amok in a Manhattan high-rise building called Clamp Tower, owned by John Glover’s Donald Trump-like mogul. The Cider House Rules (1999) ★★★☆☆ BBC Two, 11.15pm John Irving’s adaptation of his own 1985 novel features a fine Tobey Maguire and Michael Caine, who won an Oscar (only his second at the time). Irving won one too, for Best Screenplay, and there’s no doubt the story is moving, though this version – about an orphan (Maguire) and a doctor (Caine) who performs illegal abortions – is at times a bit saccharine. Paul Rudd co-stars; Lasse Hallström directs. The Drop (2014) ★★★★☆ Channel 4, 11.35pm Tom Hardy anchors this tale of simmering malfeasance as the tender of a Brooklyn bar designated as the drop for ill-gotten gains. Dennis Lehane adapts his own short story Animal Rescue, and makes a perfect team with Belgian director Michaël R Roskam, who gets a tamped-down, shuffling and beautifully calibrated star turn out of Hardy. Sopranos star James Gandolfini adds a burly gravitas in what would be his final movie. Sunday 10 December Jumbo with keeper Matthew Scott in 1882 Credit: BBC Attenborough and the Giant Elephant BBC One, 9.00pm Can we ever have too much Attenborough? It seems not, as right in the foaming wake of the fabulous Blue Planet II (which concludes tonight, see preview below) comes this absorbing, bittersweet tale of the world’s first animal superstar – Jumbo the elephant. It’s a sad story, really. Jumbo shot to fame shortly after his arrival at London Zoo as an orphan in around 1861, but he didn’t get much from the deal. As Attenborough says, his captive life was “troubled, fuelled by alcohol, terrifying fits of violence, a near mystical relationship with his keeper and a tragic end that seems hard to believe”. Which is more than enough to hold the attention for an hour as he joins an international team examining Jumbo’s preserved skeleton at New York’s Museum of Natural History. Attenborough also pokes about in archives at London Zoo, sanctuaries in the Maasai Mara and Tennessee, and Ontario where Jumbo met his very sad end, building as complete a picture of this magnificent creature and his global travels as has ever been assembled. All the while it spreads a positive conservationist message and gives thanks that attitudes are more enlightened now than in Victorian times. GO Premier League Football: Liverpool v Everton & Manchester United v Manchester City Sky Sports Main Event, 1.15pm & 4.15pm “Super Sunday” lives up to its hyperbolic billing, with two potentially exhilarating derbies. First up, we’re at Anfield where Liverpool, fresh from their 5-1 demolition of Brighton, host Everton, who found some form last week, following up their 4-0 win at home to West Ham United with a 2-0 victory against Huddersfield. Later, in the 4.30pm kick-off, José Mourinho and Pep Guardiola renew rivalries as second-placed United host leaders City at Old Trafford. Expect it to be tight. PS Britain’s Wildest Weather 2017 Channel 4, 6.30pm This year has not, so far, been as extreme as some but, given the number of smartphone-wielding citizen journalists, there’s plenty of jaw-dropping footage of every extreme weather event that occurred, among them devastating floods, tornadoes and hair-raising lightning strikes. GO Blue Planet II BBC One, 8.00pm This extraordinary series concludes with an undeniably depressing assessment of mankind’s impact on the marine environment. But David Attenborough, as ever, prefers to put the emphasis on hope. So there’s plenty of uplift too with stories of species brought back from extinction’s brink. GO Coastal Railways with Julie Walters Channel 4, 8.00pm Julie Walters heads for Cornwall on the Great Western route, recalling her childhood holidays in Torquay. She then boards a steam train at Paignton, hears tales of smugglers in Polperro and fills up on cakes in Penzance. GO Leonora Carrington: the Lost Surrealist BBC Four, 9.00pm This fascinating film tells the story of rebellious upper-class British artist Leonora Carrington, who worked alongside Ernst, Breton and Éluard in Paris at the height of the surrealist movement, yet died in 2011 all but forgotten in Mexico. Director Teresa Griffiths mixes interviews and biographical material with experimental animation and tableaux to bring Carrington’s work vividly to life. GO I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! ITV, 9.00pm Seventeen series in and the public appetite for watching celebrities endure humiliation and repulsion shows little sign of drying up. This year’s launch pulled in ITV’s biggest audience of 2017. The final will no doubt draw as big a crowd again. GO Babylon Berlin Sky Atlantic, from 9.00pm Three more atmospheric episodes of the gripping crime series set in the bohemian, political Weimar Germany of the late Twenties. Detective Rath’s (Volker Bruch) investigation uncovers dangerous evidence of a shocking military conspiracy. GO The Sky At Night BBC Four, 10.00pm As well as more stargazing from the Royal Observatory, Maggie Aderin-Pocock is in Norway to see the Northern Lights. GO Ben-Hur (1959) ★★★★★ ITV3, 2.45pm A majestic slice of Hollywood history, this Roman-era melodrama directed by William Wyler and starring Charlton Heston won 11 Academy Awards (not equalled until Titanic in 1997). It still makes for magnificent viewing. Set in 26AD, it tells the story of a Jewish prince who clashes with the Roman governor and ends up enslaved, desperately plotting his revenge. The Sorcerer’s Apprentice (2010) ★★★★☆ Channel 4, 3.00pm Jerry Bruckheimer gives the famous sequence from Disney’s Fantasia a fun, live-action reboot. Student Dave (Jay Baruchel) inherits Merlin’s powers, placing him in a power struggle between Balthazar (Nicolas Cage) and Horvath (Alfred Molina). Sadly there are just two scenes with broomsticks to link it to the original. Toby Kebbel is amusing as a stage musician co-opted by the forces of evil. Toy Story (1995) ★★★★★ BBC One, 3.35pm The idea of the first fully computer-generated animated film didn’t have those who had been weaned on the hand-drawn delights of Disney jumping for joy. However, with this beautiful tale, Pixar pushed animation to a new level – the premise, pace and emotion are all pitched perfectly. Whether it’s your first or 400th viewing, the story of toy cowboy Woody (Tom Hanks) and plastic spaceman Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen) is a joy. Monday 11 December Faye Marsa, Sarah Parish and Amara Karan in Bancroft Credit: ITV Bancroft ITV, 9.00pm With so many crime dramas clogging up the television schedules it can be hard for a new series to stand out and at first ITV’s latest four-parter seems unlikely to break the mould. There’s an ambitious female cop with a possibly troubled past (the always reliable Sarah Parish), a striving younger cop who is desperate to move up the ranks (Faye Marsay) and the usual crop of jobsworths and strivers (Charles Babalola is particularly good as the married fellow officer Marsay’s Katherine should be steering well clear of). It’s all perfectly well done with a solid script from Kate Brooke (Mr Selfridge) but it seems like nothing special. Then, three quarters of the way through this first episode, something genuinely interesting happens: Bancroft’s secrets are revealed to be very dark indeed just as Katherine’s cold case involving the break-in and violent murder of a young woman in 1990 starts hotting up. With the stakes suddenly raised Bancroft spins off into a dark tale of the lengths that people go to keep the past buried and the stage is set for an intriguing game of secrets and lies. Smart scheduling sees the rest of the story play out over consecutive nights. SH Street Auction BBC One, 11.00am Paul Martin returns with a new series of the surprisingly addictive show in which people band together to raise funds for a member of their community by auctioning off hidden treasures. The fun comes from the unusual objects unearthed from garages and attics. SH Nigella’s Christmas Table BBC Two, 8.00pm If anything is guaranteed to Nigella put into purring overload it’s Christmas. The food on offer includes roast duck with orange, soy and ginger, but this is really about mood rather than food. SH Paul Hollywood: A Baker’s Life Channel 4, 8.00pm Episode three of this genial series sees Hollywood looking back over his career and his time spent working at the Cliveden House Hotel in Berkshire. There’s also a festive get-together in Merseyside and some seasonal Danish pastries, which look delicious. SH The Art That Made Mexico: Paradise, Power and Prayers BBC Four, 9.00pm It’s always a pleasure to find a series that sheds new light on a subject, and so it is with artist Alinka Echeverria’s enthralling films about Mexico’s art. Of course, there are the key points: conquest, independence, dictatorship, revolution and figures such as Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo, but what the commentary gives us here is the context for both the history and the artists. This is true of this episode that looks at the relationship between art and power, colonialism and control while examining the enduring power of Kahlo’s work and myth. SH Handmade in Mexico BBC Four, 10.00pm The focus here is on Mexico’s celebrated Tree of Life sculptures, those gaudy, gorgeous interpretations of everything from the creation myth to the resurrection of Christ and the Day of the Dead. It’s a fascinating half-hour in which we see the amount of work and detail that goes into each piece. SH White Right: Meeting the Enemy: Exposure ITV, 10.40pm; STV, 11.05pm; UTV, 11.40pm; Wales, 11.10pm This intriguing-sounding documentary sees the Bafta-nominated Deeyah Khan (Jihad: A Story of the Others) investigate white extremism in the US. Khan visits white nationalist groups, attends a far-right rally and asks why this poisonous ideology is resurgent. SH The Black Swan (1942) ★★★☆☆ Film4, 2.35pm No, this is not the film about the ageing ballet dancer and the young ingénue; this is about high adventure on the seven seas. When Laird Cregar’s Captain Morgan becomes Governor of Jamaica, he promises to put an end to piracy. But things don’t go smoothly, especially when his assistant (Tyrone Power) kidnaps the ex-governor’s beautiful daughter (Maureen O’Hara). This was the final film of silent star Helene Costello. Mamma Mia! (2008) ★★★☆☆ ITV3, 7.50pm This musical comedy, directed by Phyllida Lloyd and set to Abba’s hits, is pure escapism. It’s naff, but that’s its selling point, as stars Meryl Streep, Pierce Brosnan and Julie Walters place tongues firmly in cheeks. At 59, Streep deserved more credit for doing the splits than for her role as a boho mother living on a Greek island whose daughter (Amanda Seyfried) tries to find out who her biological father is. Blood Diamond (2006) ★★★☆☆ Sky Cinema Greats, 8.00pm The diamond industry of Sierra Leone is the subject of this striking thriller. Djimon Hounsou stars as a fisherman forced to work in the fields, who finds and hides a rare pink gem. His life is changed when he meets Leonardo DiCaprio’s self-serving mercenary and Jennifer Connelly’s well-meaning journalist. DiCaprio was Oscar-nominated, but lost to Forest Whitaker for The Last King of Scotland. Tuesday 12 December Paul Ready, Diane Morgan and Anna Maxwell-Martin Credit: BBC Motherland BBC Two, 10.00pm Dispensing with the calamitous set pieces of previous episodes and instead documenting the quiet desperation of this ill-starred band of sisters (plus one brother), this superb, exhausting sitcom from a writing supergroup including Graham Linehan and Sharon Horgan has been an exquisitely painful delight. We join Julia (Anna Maxwell Martin) in an unusually good place, with everything running smoothly thanks to her new Australian nanny, Lyndsey (Sarah Kendall). The kids are clean and happy, the school run is easy, the fridge is stocked – but could she be too good to be true? Amanda (Lucy Punch) has gone to ground after the revelation over her threesome, while her hapless confidant, Kevin (Paul Ready), is desperate to avoid having to get a job. And, should all the mugging get too much, there’s deadpan Liz (Diane Morgan), negotiating tricky relations with her dismal ex and his new, pregnant partner. After an orgy of passive aggression and desperate people in denial, the façades crack, just a little. Happily everyone reverts to fundamentally appalling type just in time for the end of the series and a surely inevitable recommission. GT Judd Apatow: the Return Netflix, from today After 25 years away from stand-up, the comedy zelig whose fingerprints are over everything from Knocked Up and Girls to Freaks and Geeks and Bridesmaids returns for a special set in Montreal, recorded in July. GT Masterchef: the Professionals BBC Two, 8.00pm After the hopefuls have tackled an invention test and rustled up a dish dedicated to one of their inspirations, Marcus Wareing, Monica Galletti and Gregg Wallace eliminate another two contenders, leaving only six in the contest. GT The A Word BBC One, 9.00pm Joe’s (brilliant Max Vento) family comes together for an end of year show at his old school – tears, acrimony and reconciliation ensue in the conclusion of Peter Bowker’s finely wrought, well-performed drama. A third series should surely be a formality. GT Invasion! with Sam Willis BBC Four, 9.00pm While not quite attaining Lucy Worsley levels of gonzo history, Dr Sam Willis is an enthusiastic and knowledgeable host not above the odd stunt to prove a point. This second episode of a series documenting the incursions that have shaped our nation and its bloodline examines the differing techniques and goals of the invaders. There are the Barbary Corsaire pirates who settled on Lundy Island, King Louis the Lion, invited to invade and crowned by disgruntled nobles, and the Dutch forces that negotiated the Medway just a year prior to the Glorious Revolution. Further proof, if any were needed, that Britain is a mongrel nation and all the better for it. GT The World’s Most Expensive Presents Channel 4, 9.00pm Eyeball-melting opulence and appalling lack of taste do battle with considerable craftsmanship and class in this startling film featuring everything from gold-plated pushbikes to a poker set in alligator-hide case. GT Sports Personality of the Year 2017: The Contenders BBC One, 10.45pm; Wales, 11.10pm; Scotland, 11.45pm With reigning title-holder Andy Murray’s injury-hit year effectively ruling him out of contention, Anthony Joshua, Chris Froome, Lewis Hamilton, Jo Konta and Mo Farah will be headlining this year’s roster after another 12 months of outstanding achievement in British sport. The runners and riders are introduced tonight. GT Shane (1953) ★★★★☆ Film4, 3.45pm There are few Westerns that examine the depths of human emotions, but this film by George Stevens is one of them and has become a landmark of cinema. Shane (Alan Ladd) is a cowboy who finds himself idolised for the way that he handles himself in the face of a landowner’s heavies. The climax is a face-off between Shane and smiling, whispering, Oscar-nominated Jack Palance, as the original man in black. A must-see. Mr & Mrs Smith (2005) ★★★☆☆ 5STAR, 9.00pm A daft comedy thriller which is perhaps best remembered for being the film that introduced Brad Pitt to Angelina Jolie. They play a couple whose failing marriage is spiced up dramatically when each discovers that the other secretly works as an assassin. Let down by a weak script, the film is held together by the chemistry between its two leads. Vince Vaughn and Adam Brody co-star. Moonraker (1979) ★★★☆☆ ITV4, 9.00pm The 11th film in the Bond series, and the fourth to star Roger Moore as the dapper MI6 agent, involves the theft of a space shuttle. It’s one of the weaker Bond films and at times seems more of a comedy than a tense action adventure, but it’s enjoyably frivolous. Michael Lonsdale plays resident baddie Hugo Drax who pinches the aforementioned space shuttle to help along his plan to wipe out the world’s population. Wednesday 13 December Barbara Schulz in Vanished by the Lake Credit: Channel 4 Vanished by the Lake Channel 4, 10.00pm This haunting French crime drama centres on a teenage girl who goes missing at a festival. It’s hardly an original set-up, but much like last year’s hit Gallic import The Disappearance, based on an almost identical premise, the mix of youthful promise cut short and fierce small-town intrigue quickly compels. The girl in question is Chloé Delval (Charlie Joirkin), and as news of her disappearance spreads, memories of a similar 15-year-old case in which two other girls vanished at the same celebration are revived. Into the fray steps striking Parisian detective Lise Stocker (Barbara Schulz), who has returned home to look after her ill mother, but is soon swept up by the case as its personal implications begin to unfold. All of the hallmarks of the Nordic noir genre are present, from the evocative setting (here a Broadchurch-style coastal backdrop) to the close-knit neighbours with secrets to hide. Nevertheless, this opening episode is an effective tension builder and the human impact of the mystery – particularly on Chloé’s fracturing parents – is powerfully moving. Once episode one finishes, the full series will be available to watch on All 4. TD Mary Berry’s Country House Secrets BBC One, 8.00pm Mary Berry rounds off her tour of Britain’s stately homes at Goodwood House, where she is suitably gushing over its royal history and grand interiors. Berry is treated to a hair-raising lap of the nearby motor circuit and whips up a four-tier cake for the cricket tea. TD The Secret Life of the Zoo Channel 4, 8.00pm The plight of the endangered Javan green magpie is on the agenda as keepers at Chester Zoo attempt to breed youngster Permata with older bird Netuba. Elsewhere, a zebra battle breaks out when newcomer Okoth arrives. TD Peaky Blinders BBC Two, 9.00pm A burst of gunfire opens the penultimate episode of period gangster antics, as Tommy Shelby (Cillian Murphy) faces off against mafia honcho Luca Changretta (Adrien Brody). An army colonel, meanwhile, questions Ada (Sophie Rundle) about her Communist past. TD The Channel: The World’s Busiest Waterway Channel 4, 9.00pm The fallout from Project Nemo, the new underwater electricity cable being laid between Belgium and Britain, is explored. We follow the Nemo manager struggling to avoid costly delays and the fisherman whose catch is being compromised by the work. TD Royal Academy: Painting the Future Sky Arts, 9.00pm Virtual reality (VR) is predicted to become the go-to place for everything from entertainment to work. The Royal Academy is getting in on the act with a new exhibition which explores the potential of the medium. This film follows the show’s creation with the artists, including sculptor Antony Gormley, portraitist Jonathan Yeo and Turner Prize-nominee Yinka Shonibare, who are producing works that use the technology to trace the history of the body in art. TD David Hockney: Time Reclaimed Sky Arts, 10.30pm This tribute to David Hockney aims to get beyond the glamour that surrounds his reputation, and focus on the personal aspects of his work. Anecdotes, images and analysis of the pictures themselves highlight the individuality expressed in each period of Hockney’s career, suggesting a diverse oeuvre that defies classification. TD Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967) ★★★☆☆ Film4, 11.00am George Roy Hill directed two of the most popular films ever: Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) and The Sting (1973). But this indifferent Julie Andrews musical of the flapper era was first. There’s much to enjoy in the story of a naive woman who leaves her rural roots behind to seek fortune and romance in Twenties New York. James Fox, as a spiffing salesman, is a particular highlight. The Three Musketeers (2011) ★★☆☆☆ E4, 8.00pm Paul W S Anderson’s adaptation of Alexandre Dumas’ novel is faithful in plot – Porthos, Athos and Aramis (Ray Stevenson, Matthew Macfadyen, Luke Evans), and disciple d’Artagnan (Logan Lerman), are sent to retrieve the French Queen’s (Juno Temple) necklace. The tone, however, is half action-pantomime, half candy-coloured steampunk comic – fun but terribly slapdash. Poltergeist (1982) ★★★★☆ TCM, 11.15pm Director Tobe Hooper, who made The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, tones down the gut-churning horror but still ramps up the tension to nightmare levels in this Steven Spielberg-produced chiller. It has one of cinema’s most spine-tinglingly scary moments: “They’re here,” sing-songs a little girl kneeling before the TV. “They” are the spirits, at first playful then increasingly malevolent, who terrorise a suburban family. Thursday 14 December Lord Sugar Credit: BBC The Apprentice: Why I Fired Them BBC One, 8.00pm In the wake of last night’s excoriating interview round, and with this Sunday’s final rapidly approaching to decide who will win a £250,000 investment and the mentoring opportunity of a lifetime, Lord Sugar makes his most personal appearance of the series. Other than those brief to-camera inserts that roll out as taxi cabs ferry freshly defenestrated candidates away from Sugar Towers to forever dream of fortunes that might have been made, this is one of few occasions in each “process” when Lord Sugar appears on screen away from the wannabe tycoons and talking to viewers directly. And he makes the most of it with his trademark witty-gritty line in East End charm, although professionalism usually prevents him from really dishing the behind-the-scenes dirt on why he thought 16 of them worthy only of the tip of his boot. Instead he looks back over this 13th series identifying the key commercial and strategic errors that led to each of his firing finger decisions, and what ultimately marked out the two finalists from the others. It’s a lot to get through in an hour but, as series recaps go, it’s usually a hoot. GO Ashes Cricket: Australia v England BT Sport 1, 1.30am The enduring Ashes Down Under conundrum: wake up early to watch it or stay up late? The third Test, held at the WACA Ground in Perth, gets under way in the early hours of Thursday morning, with England hoping to bounce back from two demoralising defeats. Lose this one and captain Joe Root will have to surrender the urn to the Aussies. PS European Tour Golf: The Indonesian Masters Sky Sports Main Event, 6.00am It’s the opening day of the tournament at the Royale Jakarta Golf Club, where Thailand’s Poom Saksansin won the title last year. Saksansin shot an overall score of 270 to finish on -18, five strokes ahead of joint runners-up Masahiro Kawamura of Japan and fellow Thai players Phachara Khongwatmai and Suradit Yongcharoenchai. PS Amazing Spaces Snow and Ice Special Channel 4, 8.00pm George Clarke and his inventive sidekick Will Hardie travel to Norway’s remoter parts to check out why this small country on the edge of Europe punches above its weight in architecture and design. Could it be something to do with the cold weather, they wonder? GO Love, Lies & Records BBC One, 9.00pm Kay Mellor’s drama about the romance of working at a Leeds registry office delivers on melodrama, if not subtlety. In this penultimate episode Kate (Ashley Jensen) struggles to make a decision after Rob’s (Adrian Bower) surprise proposal. GO Blitz: the Bombs That Changed Britain BBC Two, 9.00pm The final edition looks at the horrific impact of German incendiary bombs, in particular one that set a church ablaze in Bristol in November 1940 and started a firestorm that ravaged the city’s historic centre. GO The Tunnel: Vengeance Sky Atlantic, 9.00pm Sky’s award-winning version of The Bridge (its milieu that of British and French police teams linked by the Channel Tunnel) returns for a third and final run. A pity, as Stephen Dillane as spiky detective and Clémence Poésy as his emotionally remote French opposite number make an appealing pair. This first of six episodes packs in plenty of action as the pair set out to find the link between a burnt-out trawler and a maintenance worker attacked by a plague of rats. GO Extraordinary Teens: School of Life and Deaf Channel 4, 10.00pm This absorbing film follows a year in the life of Mary Hare Boarding School for deaf pupils in Berkshire. Seen through the eyes of a 15-year-old about to undergo a potentially life-changing cochlear implant, this film gives a profound sense of the physical and emotional complexities of growing up deaf. GO The Russell Howard Hour Sky One, 10.00pm We’ve reached the penultimate episode of this excellent topical comedy series. It’s little more than an extended version of BBC Three’s (and later BBC Two’s) Good News but that’s exactly what fans (and Sky, who snapped Howard up) wanted and he has delivered, pushing his brand of highly topical, politically aware, positive reinforcement stand-up with aplomb. GO Life (2017) ★★★☆☆ Sky Cinema Premiere, 8.00pm Daniel Espinosa’s Earth-orbiting suspense flick was released less than two months before Ridley Scott’s new chapter in his Alien franchise, and bears many of the same hallmarks. It’s also a little bit Gravity. Ryan Reynolds is one of a crew of astronauts aboard a space station conducting research into life on Mars. In terms of entertainment, the film does its baseline job of getting you to chew your nails off. There’s Something About Mary (1998) ★★★☆☆ Comedy Central, 9.00pm There are bad taste jokes in abundance in this comedy from the Farrelly Brothers. Ben Stiller stars as Ted, a shy man who realises he’s still in love with Mary (Cameron Diaz, proving her comic abilities), the date he tried to take to prom 13 years ago. So, to track her down, he hires an oily private eye (Matt Dillon) who also fallsin love with her and sets out to keep the pair apart. Gone in 60 Seconds (2000) ★★★☆☆ Universal Channel, 9.00pm Nicolas Cage has top billing in Dominic Sena’s remake of the 1974 cult film – a mind-numbingly testosterone-laced ride. Cage and Angelina Jolie are among a crew of thieves who must steal 50 cars in 72 hours to stop the murder of Cage’s brother. It’s more than serviceable entertainment, plus car aficionados will have fun spotting the Cadillacs and Corvettes. Friday 15 December Paul, Andy, Cynthia and Diana in The Sweet Makers Credit: BBC The Sweet Makers at Christmas BBC Two, 9.00pm Following their enjoyable three-part series earlier this year, BBC Two’s Sweet Makers return for this one-off Christmas special looking at changing treats from Georgian times to the Twenties. As before, the show is a lovely mix of baking and interesting social history with Emma Dabiri and Dr Annie Gray, who fill us in on how each era viewed Christmas and how confectionery changes over time. The show’s highlight comes during the Victorian Era, also known as the moment when Christmas as we know it was invented, as chocolatiers Paul A Young and Diane Short, bespoke cake decorator Cynthia Stroud and sweet consultant Andy Baxendale recreate a Boar’s Head cake. “That’s the most bonkers thing we’ve ever made,” notes Young, looking at the finished result, which is rich in chocolate, beautifully decorated and featuring unnervingly glazed eyes. He’s right but it also looks fabulous, as do the intricate Twelfth Cakes, a speciality in Georgian times. The Twenties brings with it the wonderful news that before Terry’s invented the chocolate orange they introduced the chocolate apple to the world, before looking to the future and the invention of Lord Mackintosh’s Quality Street. SH Jean-Claude Van Johnson Amazon Prime Video, from today This delightfully silly new series sees Jean-Claude Van Damme as a retired action film star with a secret: he’s a special agent and he wants back in the game. It’s inspired mayhem anchored by a winning performance from the laconic Van Damme. SH Trollhunters Netflix, from today Guillermo del Toro’s inventive animation returns for a second series, and it features the voice of the late Anton Yelchin as reluctant hero Jim Lake Jnr. The story continues where the first series left off, and sees Jim adventure deeper into the Troll world to battle the leader of the Darklands. This series also features Mark Hamill and Game of Thrones’s Lena Headey. SH Judge Rinder’s Crown Court ITV, 8.00pm; not STV or UTV; Wales, 11.10pm Judge Rinder’s reboot of classic Seventies series Crown Court might lack the big-name actors of the original but its meld of real-life crime and courtroom drama is just as addictive. Tonight, the jury decides if James Byron (Rupert Young) murdered his wife. SH Jamie and Jimmy’s Friday Night Feast Channel 4, 8.00pm Sarah Millican is a brave guest of Oliver and Doherty – brave because it swiftly transpires that cooking really isn’t her thing. But Oliver manages to bite his tongue while showing her how to cook her favourite microwave meal from scratch. SH Have I Got News for You BBC One, 9.00pm The 54th series of the satirical news quiz comes to an end with the ever-reliable David Tennant in the host’s chair. It has been a patchy series, which was marked by a new low when Jo Brand had to explain why sexual harassment jokes weren’t funny to the male panellists. So let’s hope it goes out on a high. SH Roy Orbison: Love Hurts BBC Four, 9.30pm Roy Orbison’s three sons, Wesley, Roy Jnr and Alex, take centre stage to discuss their father in this emotional documentary. SH The Graham Norton Show BBC One, 10.35pm; NI, 11.05pm Prepare for Star Wars: The Last Jedi overload as John Boyega, Daisy Ridley and Mark Hamill join Norton on the sofa. Don’t expect any spoilers but there’s sure to be some nice eulogies to the late Carrie Fisher. SH Before I Go to Sleep (2014) ★★★☆☆ More4, 9.00pm Nicole Kidman and Colin Firth star in this uninvolving thriller based on SJ Watson’s twisty bestseller. Kidman plays a woman who, after suffering a head injury, has no idea who she is or who the man sleeping next to her might be (it’s Colin Firth, playing her husband). She keeps a daily video diary but starts to notice discrepancies between what she’s recorded and what Firth tells her. The Pledge (2001) ★★★★☆ Sony Movie Channel, 9.00pm A tense mystery directed by Sean Penn with a fine cast including Jack Nicholson, Helen Mirren, Robin Wright Penn, Aaron Eckhart and Vanessa Redgrave. Nicholson is a detective who has to handle a horrific case on the day of his retirement – the murder of a seven-year-old girl. He promises to bring the killer to justice, only to find that the case is far from straightforward. A powerful, unsettling film. Hyena (2014) ★★★☆☆ Film4, 11.15pm This violent thriller about corrupt drug-squad officers is very violent indeed, so be prepared to cover your eyes for some parts of writer-director Gerard Johnson’s film. Michael Logan (an intense Peter Ferdinand) is the leader of this special force, assigned to tackle drug trafficking among the Balkan gangs. Stephen Graham, as his dubious boss, is as reliable as ever. Above all, it’s a grisly exploration of the criminal mind. Television previewers Toby Dantzic, Catherine Gee, Simon Horsford, Sarah Hughes, Clive Morgan, Gerard O'Donovan, Vicki Power, Patrick Smith, Gabriel Tate and Rachel Ward

What's on TV tonight: Strictly, The X Factor final and Imagine: Rachel Whiteread

Saturday 2 December Imagine: Rachel Whiteread: Ghost in the Room BBC Two, 9.00pm Rachel Whiteread is an artist whose work, more than most, does not come across especially well on television given that it is about things that cannot be seen, dealing in negative spaces, absences and the intangibleness of memory. Now, 25 years after she made an impact alongside Damien Hirst, Tracey Emin and other Young British Artists, Whiteread is indisputably one of Britain’s most highly regarded sculptors. Her signature style, which usually take the form of concrete casts, remains one of the most recognisable in British art. Here, Alan Yentob takes the opportunity afforded by an ongoing major retrospective at the Tate to consider Whiteread’s artistic output. He pays particular attention to the controversy surrounding her 1993 Turner-winning piece, House – a full-scale “reproduction” of the interior volumes of a condemned terraced house in London’s East End. That remains, perhaps, Whiteread’s best-known work but there’s also an assessment of her wider impact, notably in representing Britain at the Venice Biennale, and her evocative “Nameless Library” Holocaust memorial in Vienna. Gerard O’Donovan Can We Live with Robots? Channel 4, 7.00pm One of the more intriguing films in the Rise of the Robots season sees choreographer Akram Khan research cutting-edge robotics in order to create a dance piece about “how humans and robots might come to share our world”. Well, it’s something different. GO Strictly Come Dancing BBC One, 7.05pm It is musicals week, and the six remaining contestants will be keen to make a big impression in what is traditionally one of the more ambitious Strictly rounds. There will, no doubt, be some razzle dazzle on the performances, and even the judges might take to the dance floor. GO The X Factor: Live final ITV, 7.05pm With its viewing figures dipping, it is perhaps foolhardy to kick off the final in the same time as Strictly. Still, that won’t stunt the excitement on stage as the finalists compete to be one of two acts put through to tomorrow’s deciding vote. GO Michael McIntyre’s Big Show BBC One, 8.10pm Stereophonics and Jessie J join McIntyre at the Theatre Royal, while former England footballer Alan Shearer gets to cringe from the sidelines as the comedian sends out a mortifying text message to all of the contacts in his phone. GO Hamilton: Building America History, 9.00pm Alexander Hamilton was one of America’s more overlooked founding fathers until Lin-Manuel Miranda’s genre-busting musical Hamilton conquered not only Broadway but the world. This two-hour recap of Hamilton’s life is considerably more ponderous than the musical, but it’s an absorbing account of a man who rose from a penniless West Indies’ orphan to be one of the most influential figures in George Washington’s fledgling US administration. GO Toots & the Maytals: From the Roots Sky Arts, 9.00pm The story of Jamaican musician Toots Hibbert (one of Rolling Stone magazine’s 100 greatest singers) who, with his pioneering band The Maytals, laid the foundations of reggae in the Sixties with hits such as Do the Reggay and, more widely, in albums such as the Seventies’ From the Roots. A terrific story with some great archive recordings. GO Live Premier League Football: Chelsea v Newcastle Sky Sports Main Event, 11.30am After a blip, which saw manager Antonio Conte’s job come under scrutiny, Chelsea’s form has improved in recent weeks (they have lost just one match in the last six in all competitions). And they will be looking to continue this form as they host Newcastle at Stamford Bridge. Newcastle winger Christian Atsu has been denied the chance to play against his former club after being ruled out with a thigh injury. This, along with the fact that the Magpies are also without captain Jamaal Lascelles and left-back Paul Dummett, could spell trouble for manager Rafa Benítez. The pressure is already mounting on the Spaniard as his inconsistent side are without a win in five matches, but he is confident that his team are turning things around. CM International Rugby Union: Wales v South Africa Saturday, BBC One, 2.00pm The autumn internationals come to an end at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff as Wales take on South Africa. Wales began their series with defeat to Australia, but showed glimpses of a new attacking style. They will be out to show this in full flow, especially now that they can utilise loose forward Taulupe Faletau, who has been released by his club Bath to play. With this boost, they are confident of defeating the Springboks side. CM Annie Claus Is Coming to Town (2011, TVM) ★★☆☆☆ Channel 5, 3.35pm This sweet made-for-TV movie borrows heavily from Elf and Enchanted, as Santa’s daughter Annie (Maria Thayer) leaves her home in the North Pole to discover the world. Landing in Los Angeles, she gets a job at an ailing toy shop, uses her cheer to turn the business around and falls for boss Ted (Samuel Page). Will he end up meeting her under the mistletoe? Wayne’s World (1992) ★★★★☆ Comedy Central, 6.00pm The wonder of Wayne’s World is the presence of the lovably idiotic duo Wayne and Garth (Mike Myers and Dana Carvey), who host an inept cable TV show and are exploited by a crooked businessman (Rob Lowe). The plot is a negligible ingredient: it’s all about the goofy repartee (“Schwing!”) – and the unforgettable in-car mime to Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody. The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2011) ★★★☆☆ Channel 4, 8.00pm Seven senior citizens (Maggie Smith, Judi Dench, Tom Wilkinson and Bill Nighy among them) travel from Britain to Jaipur, where they find the promised Exotic Marigold Hotel, run by Dev Patel, isn’t quite what they were expecting. The film is encumbered by too many interwoven stories and falls down on some wince-inducing clichés, but it’s hard to resist this cast of national treasures. Sunday 3 December Hayley Atwell in 'Howard's End' Howards End BBC One, 9.00pm The BBC’s adaptation of E M Forster’s classic comes to an end with a perfectly paced finale that remains true to its roots while also allowing us to see the story afresh. Much has already been said about Kenneth Lonergan’s astute take on Foster’s tale of the clash between the materialistic Wilcox family and the bohemian Schlegels, yet what really made this one such a joy to watch is his acute understanding of loneliness and unspoken yearning – something that is never clearer than in the beautifully restrained scenes between Matthew Macfadyen’s Henry Wilcox and Hayley Atwell’s Margaret Schlegel. Not that the triumph is Lonergan’s alone: Hettie McDonald directs with verve, making the old tale appear vibrant and fresh, while MacFadyen and Atwell are outstanding in the central roles. The cast as a whole has been wonderful, with praise reserved for Alex Lawther, who manages to make Tibby both irritating and admirable in his dedication to the hypochondriac life. If there is one complaint, it’s perhaps that the awkward Leonard Bast (Joseph Quinn) remains underwritten to the end, with Lonergan more interested in the relationship between the Schlegel sisters than in the would-be protégé they befriend. Sarah Hughes Love and Drugs on the Streets BBC Three, from 10.00am This excellent BBC series about a group of homeless women has been unbearably sad at times. The concluding episode sees chill autumn winds hit Brighton, bringing with it a host of new problems, particularly for Paige, who is struggling to cope without her daughter. SH Blue Planet II BBC One, 8.00pm As it visits the world’s coastlines, this episode of the nature series is among its most colourful yet. We see, among other things, sea lions demonstrate teamwork and follow leaping crabs as they try desperately to survive. As always, David Attenborough’s sonorous tones hold the whole thing together. SH Robot Wars BBC Two, 8.00pm It’s the final on the robot destruction show, and we’re promised the series’ biggest ever battle, during which of the 10 robots return to fight for the last place in the final. The victor of the “robot rumble” will then face the episode winners to see which machine is crowned champion. SH Coastal Railways with Julie Walters Channel 4, 8.00pm The actress heads to one of the UK’s most spectacular railway lines, the coastal stretch between Newcastle and Edinburgh. Walters is an engaging presence and, in addition to the gorgeous scenery, there are some fascinating facts, including the reason why the Balmoral Hotel’s clock runs slow. SH Expedition Volcano BBC Two, 9.00pm The final part of this enthralling documentary series sees the team head to volcano Nyamulagira in the Congo. The volcano erupts regularly but there is no monitoring of it, largely because militia groups have a heavy presence in the area. SH Babylon Berlin Sky Atlantic, 9.00pm & 10.00pm Series two of the big-budget take on Volker Kutscher’s novels begins, and things are not looking great for DI Gereon Rath (Volker Bruch), who finds himself increasingly alone in a city where it pays to have friends. SH The Frankenstein Chronicles ITV Encore, 10.00pm This rip-roaring adventure deserves a wider audience, not least because Sean Bean is on fine form as detective-turned-monster John Marlott. This week, Marlott receives the news he’s been waiting for: Daniel Hervey (Ed Stoppard) is alive. SH The Dam Busters (1954, b/w) ★★★★☆ ITV4, 2.25pm This is a much-loved film version of the Second World War air raid. The RAF are struggling to destroy German dams so engineer Barnes Wallis (Michael Redgrave) dreams up a bomb that can do the job. And it’s rather left field – the bomb will be dropped from a plane and bounce along the water like a skimmed stone. Lord of the Rings’s Peter Jackson is producing a modern remake, which is written by Stephen Fry. Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol (2011) ★★★☆☆ Channel 4, 9.00pm Tom Cruise rises to the challenge in this gravity-defying thrill ride. The plot surrounds Cruise with a gifted group of operatives, including faithful friend Benji (Simon Pegg), a lovely but platonic sidekick (Paula Patton), and an “enigmatic” new buddy (Jeremy Renner), who must collectively prevent a nuclear strike. Brad Bird directs. Taxi Tehran (2015) ★★★★☆ BBC Four, 11.00pm Jafar Panahi is one of Iran’s most newsworthy film-makers and this is one of his more playful pieces – not an example of firebrand activism, but a self-reflexive jeu d’esprit in which his smiling face anchors the tone. In a ride around the capital, Panahi likens the skills of a cabbie to those of a director keeping his film on course. There’s nods to other films but it’s an accessible entry-point to his work. Monday 4 December The Real Marigold on Tour The Real Marigold on Tour BBC One, 9.00pm; Scotland, 10.45pm After two series inwhich celebrities of pensionable age ventured to India to assess its potential as a retirement destination, some of the same stars of The Real Marigold Hotel travel to China and, next week, Cuba, for a taste of life there for the elderly (or for elderly people of certain means, at least). Miriam Margolyes, Rosemary Shrager, Bobby George and Wayne Sleep are the quartet wrangled to the capital of Sichuan Province, Chengdu, in a nation with 230 million over the age of 60. First impressions are dismayingly stereotypical – crazy traffic, linguistic entanglements, unenticing cuisine – but matters improve as they become more adventurous. Following a revelatory railway journey, they reach a country retreat and a Giant Panda sanctuary that proves transformative for some. After the poignancy and charm of the first two series proper, Real Marigold on Tour is a little underwhelming. The personality clashes are lacking and genuine insights are thin on the ground; if anything, there’s a slight jadedness to the whole enterprise. But the celebrities are by and large gracious guests and a pleasure to spend time with, for all their gleefully displayed foibles. Gabriel Tate Armchair Detectives BBC One, 2.15pm Susan Calman’s featherlight but entertaining take on Cluedo continues, as a team of amateur sleuths bid to solve the murder of a teacher in the town of Mortcliff. GT The Hairy Bikers Home for Christmas BBC One, 3.45pm Dave Myers and Si King are among the first television chefs of the year to jump on the festive bandwagon, beginning this new series with a few recipes for alternative Christmas treats: Austrian Linzertorte, roast goose and hazelnut chocolate brownie. GT Action Woman of the Year Awards BT Sport 2, 7.30pm Clare Balding hosts the fifth annual ceremony celebrating women in sport, with Wimbledon semi-finalist Johanna Konta and England footballer Jodie Taylor among the nominees for the night’s big award. GT Employable Me BBC Two, 9.00pm Two young people, one with cerebral palsy and the other with a visual impairment, seek the help of psychologist Nancy Doyle to gain the confidence to re-enter the jobs market after difficult past experiences. This is another stirring instalment in the award-winning documentary series. GT The Art that Made Mexico: Paradise, Power and Prayers BBC Four, 9.00pm In the first of a three-part documentary series, artist Alinka Echeverria examines the geographical forces that have shaped Mexican art, and in particular the different perspectives taken on the nation’s landscape from the Spanish Conquest of the 16th century through to independence in 1900. GT Concorde: Designing the Dream Channel 5, 9.00pm The Anglo-French venture beat the Soviets and Americans, at the peak of their Cold War rivalry, to build the first supersonic passenger airliner. This accessible, enjoyable two-part documentary traces the unlikely success story with the help of key players including Michael Heseltine. GT Edgar Allen Poe: Buried Alive PBS America, 9.00pm Kathleen Turner and Denis O’Hare are several cuts above this usual reconstruction hacks in this imaginative film exploring the troubled life and startling work of one of American literature’s most disturbing talents. GT The Untouchables (1987) ★★★★☆ Sky Cinema Greats, 8.00pm Brian De Palma’s gripping Prohibition-era crime drama, based (loosely) on the memoirs of FBI agent Eliot Ness (Kevin Costner), follows Ness’s attempts to stop the ruthless mobster Al Capone (Robert De Niro, gaining 30 pounds for the role) and his gang of suave cronies. Luckily he also has incorruptible Irish cop Jimmy Malone, played by an Oscar-winning Sean Connery, on his side. The Maze Runner (2014) ★★★★☆ Film4, 9.00pm A group of teenage boys live in a meadow at the heart of a giant labyrinth: no one knows why they’re there, or what lies beyond the maze’s shifting walls, until the arrival of 16-year-old Thomas (Dylan O’Brien) precipitates a push for freedom. This lean, tense adaptation of James Dashner’s sci-fi series makes good on its wildly intriguing premise and has more than a hint of Lord of the Flies. Live and Let Die (1973) ★★★☆☆ ITV4, 9.00pm James Bond (Roger Moore) battles one of his more extraordinary opponents, Kananga (Yaphet Kotto), a Caribbean criminal mastermind masquerading as a Harlem drug baron. The film was given lukewarm reviews on its release, but this is Moore-era Bond at its preposterous best. Highlights include 007’s voodoo snake ordeal and a thrilling speedboat chase through New Orleans. Tuesday 5 December Finding Me A Family: - Jo and Mark Find Me a Family Channel 4, 9.00pm Having started in the US, adoption activity days began in the UK six years ago with the idea of allowing potential parents to meet children waiting to be adopted. But many have also been concerned that the events were little more than “beauty pageants” that would make the children feel rejected if they weren’t chosen (traditionally children are matched via written descriptions and photos). This rewarding documentary follows an event in the Midlands organised by the charity Coram. With more than 2,000 children on the adoption register in the UK, it’s clear from this heart-tugging film that every option is worth exploring ­­­­­– and the days are now seen as a success with one in four of the children being adopted. It follows 13 prospective adopters (who are advised “not cry in front of the kids”) and 10 children – and their remarkable foster carers – as they meet at a jungle-themed party. Among them are six-year-old Demi and her three younger brothers (sibling groups are more difficult to place – so this may be their last chance of remaining together), and Mark and Jo, who have six children of their own but feel that “If we’ve got it to offer, why can’t we offer it to children that need it?” SH Kirstie’s Handmade Christmas Channel 4, 8.00pm How you do make sure your Christmas presents, food and decorations “outstrip the smuggest Instagrammer”? Kirstie Allsopp has some suggestions as she shows how to make everything from “schmaltzy, upcycled” diorama tree baubles to miniature Danish cakes. SH The A Word BBC One, 9.00pm In the penultimate episode of Peter Bowker’s skilful and well-rounded drama, Paul (Lee Ingleby) has issues with a video made about his son (Max Vento) by his ex-sister-in-law, nurse Nicola (Vinette Robinson) which attempts to show the spectrum of his autism. SH Invasion! With Sam Willis BBC Four, 9.00pm In historian Sam Willis’s entertaining three-parter, he explores the battles for Britain over the millennia from the Romans, Saxons and Vikings to the “ones you’ve heard of”. It’s a story of myth, reality, climate change and DNA allied to a question of whether there has ever been a “true British people”. Willis begins with the farming invasion 6,000 years ago. SH David Jason’s Secret Service More4, 9.00pm The world evoked by John Buchan, John le Carré and Len Deighton is examined by actor and espionage enthusiast David Jason in this new three-part series about real-life spooks and spies. In the opener, Jason looks back to the beginnings of the British Secret Service in the early 20th century, learning of undercover missions and crack spies. He hears too of the role of a maverick spymaster during the First World War and the Belgian refugees who were Britain’s first secret agents. SH Motherland BBC Two, 10.00pm; NI, 11.15pm Trying to win a coveting spot in a school-run car pool, the rights and wrongs of potpourri and a revelation about a threesome are all thrown into the mix in this episode of this bitingly observant series. As ever, put-upon mother Julia (Anna Maxwell Martin) is at the forefront. Extraordinary Teens: My Gay Life Channel 4, 10.00pm Billy, who realised he was gay at the age of seven, began documenting his life after attending Gay Pride in Brighton as Lady Gaga when he was 11. Six years later, this resulting documentary is a revealing insight into the highs and lows of growing up in Billy’s world. SH The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (1970) ★★★★☆ TCM, 6.30pm English actor Robert Stephens makes a louche, witty Holmes, Colin Blakely a delightful Watson while Geneviève Page adds a tingle of sex appeal as an Irene Adler-like femme fatale to whom the great consulting detective becomes dangerously attracted. Billy Wilder’s endearing film, ostensibly a parody, is seen by many as an important influence on the BBC’s Sherlock series. The Choir (2014) ★★★☆☆ Film4, 6.55pm Dustin Hoffman gives a wonderfully minor-key performance as a tough-love choirmaster in François Girard’s affecting drama. It’s a triumph-over-adversity picture, the adversity being the disadvantaged background of a gifted 11-year-old called Stet (newcomer Garrett Wareing), whose alcoholic single mother in Odessa, Texas dies in a first-reel car crash. Eddie Izzard and Kathy Bates co-star. Bullitt (1968) ★★★☆☆ ITV4, 11.35pm This is the film that made Steve McQueen a superstar and revolutionised the car chase with its 10-minute split-screen, edge-of-your-seat race through San Francisco. McQueen plays hard-nosed, icy-cool cop Frank Bullitt, who is assigned to protect Mafia informant Johnny Ross (Pat Renella), until a pair of hit men scupper his plans. The final pursuit at the airport inspired a similar sequence in Michael Mann’s Heat. Wednesday 6 December Paul Anderson in 'Peaky Blinders' Peaky Blinders BBC Two, 9.00pm We’re midway through the fourth series and Peaky Blinders seems set on going down the path of self-parody, such is the high tide of blood, violence and criminality that it’s unleashed so far. Gore-spattered, finely choreographed excess, however, has always been a large part of its appeal, and this series’ addition of a to-the-death vendetta with Italian-American mafiosi on the mean streets of Birmingham certainly allows such excess to be delivered by the bucketload. If Adrien Brody, channelling the mumbling ghost of Don Corleone in his portrayal of the toothpick-sucking mafia boss Luca Changretta, teeters on the brink of pantomime, at least the devil’s deal that he brokered with Polly (Helen McCrory) in last week’s climactic moments captured the spine-tingling shiver of betrayal that it needed to convince. That’s where this week’s action-packed episode picks up, with the Shelby gang breaking out the weaponry again ahead of another suspected ambush, while Tommy’s (Cillian Murphy) efforts to find a regular bedmate focus on May Carleton (Charlotte Riley). And his new sideline as a boxing promoter, prompts the reappearance of old rival Alfie Solomons (Tom Hardy). Gerard O’Donovan Mary Berry’s Country House Secrets BBC One, 8.00pm On her third stately home excursion Mary Berry visits Powderham Castle, Devon, to spend time with a recently moved in family reinventing their family seat for the 21st century, and to cook up some mouthwatering woodland-inspired treats for a magical Midsummer’s Eve party. GO The Secret Life of the Zoo Channel 4, 8.00pm One of Chester’s onagers (or wild asses, if you prefer) gets over-excited when, after two years waiting, he’s allowed near the females during mating season. And turtle Charlie is showing signs of stress despite his seemingly leisurely pace of life. GO Machines of War Yesterday, 8.00pm The first in a new three-part series unpicking some of the most advanced military hardware on the planet explores the technology behind the devastatingly deadly Tomahawk Cruise missile. It’s a weapon that, after decades on the design bench, has become the West’s remote weapon of choice, capable of striking targets up to 2,500 kilometres away with terrifying accuracy. GO The Apprentice BBC One, 9.00pm It’s the candidates’ last chance to impress before next week’s terrifying interview round. And what an opportunity to shine, when they’re asked to organise a high-end catwalk show and come up with a cover feature to show off the work of up-and-coming fashion designers. GO The Channel: The World’s Busiest Waterway Channel 4, 9.00pm It’s not so much life on the ocean wave as under the seabed in this episode focusing on the complex work of the engineers responsible for keeping rail traffic moving through the Channel Tunnel safely and efficiently. GO Dian Fossey: Secrets in the Mist National Geographic, 9.00pm Pieced together from Dian Fossey’s own writings and over 40 hours of film footage, this terrific documentary looks back over the life and legacy of the dedicated American primatologist and conservationist who did so much – even to the point of being murdered – to save the Rwandan mountain gorilla from extinction. Fossey’s words are voiced by Sigourney Weaver, who brought her work to prominence in the award-winning 1988 film Gorillas in the Mist. GO Champions League Football: Liverpool v Spartak Moscow BT Sport 2, 7.45pm Liverpool and Spartak Moscow go head to head with a place in the Champions League knockout stages up for grabs. Liverpool have the advantage, knowing that they only need one point to qualify from Group E and that victory will guarantee them the top spot, regardless of how Sevilla get on against Maribor. Spartak must go all out for the win and despite the loss of Russian international Dmitri Kombarov, Massimo Carrera’s side will be buoyed by a gutsy victory over Zenit which extended their unbeaten run to 11 matches. CM Prometheus (2012) ★★★★☆ E4, 9.00pm Ridley Scott finds ways to push a genre into queasy new places with this majestic, lime-splattered, blood-spurting science-fiction adventure – a prequel to his 1979 Alien. After discovering cave paintings which point to a location in space, archaeologists Shaw (Noomi Rapace) and Holloway (Logan Marshall-Green) lead a mission to discover our ancestors. Michael Fassbender co-stars as an enigmatic android. Legally Blonde (2001) ★★★★☆ 5STAR, 11.00pm This was the moment that Reese Witherspoon entered global consciousness, and no amount of Oscar-winning turns will separate her from ditsy blonde sorority girl Elle Woods. Of course, Elle isn’t really ditsy, she turns out to be a legal eagle, which is the whole point of Australian director Robert Luketic’s first film: the revelatory observation that blondes can also have brains. The dialogue is fabulously sharp-edged. Boy (2010) ★★★★☆ Film4, 11.20pm New Zealand’s Taika Waititi has just directed Hollywood blockbuster Thor: Ragnarok, but this tender coming-of-age comedy was the indie debut that cemented his reputation for being a smart and funny talent. Set in 1984, it follows Boy (James Rolleston), an 11-year-old dreamer in a deprived rural community who worships his criminal father (Waititi) and imagines that he is a close relation of his other hero, Michael Jackson. Thursday 7 December 'Catching a Killer' Catching a Killer: A Bullet Through The Window Channel 4, 9.00pm The most striking thing about Catching a Killer, Channel 4’s ongoing look at how police murder and missing persons investigations work, is the level of access involved. This film follows the fallout from the death of 19-year-old Suhaib Mohammed. It begins with the terrified 999 call stating “My friend just got shot” and ends with the eventual arrest of his killers. Along the way a complex story emerges of a naive teenager who drifted away from his family and whose death was a terrible case of being in the wrong place with the wrong people. It’s Senior Investigating Officer Mike Lynch’s last case before retirement and one he’s therefore doubly determined to solve, but as the investigation continues so his quiet fury over the way in which the dead teenager’s death is dismissed as just another gang death increases. As always though, it is the testimony of the victim’s family which lingers longest. “We knew he’d become more distant, more private, more closed off but I don’t think we realised he was hanging with the wrong people,” says his sister quietly. His devastated father simply notes: “His heart was very soft… he had big dreams.” Sarah Hughes Ross Noble: Off Road Dave, 8.00pm As fans of his previous Dave series (Ross Noble Freewheeling) can tell you, the comedian is a true petrolhead. However, even the enthusiastic Noble might have bitten off more than he can chew this time as he attempts the Scottish Six Days Trial, an event where the world’s best motorbike riders race 100 miles every day across unforgiving terrain. SH Love, Lies & Records BBC One, 9.00pm Kay Mellor’s enjoyable drama continues with Judy (Rebecca Front) sending Rob (Adrian Bower) a video of his fiancé Kate’s (Ashley Jensen) “moment of madness” with Rick (Kenny Doughty) – but can Kate get to it first? SH Blitz: The Bombs That Changed Britain BBC Two, 9.00pm This week’s focus is Scotland, where a series of Luftwaffe raids over three nights in March 1941 devastated a community, killing 528 people, including 15 members of the same family. For the tightknit society of shipbuilders and factory workers, the aftermath was devastating; many left Clydebank, never to return. SH Live at the Apollo BBC Two, 10.00pm Our host is the sharp, smart and amiable Nish Kumar. He’s joined by the laid-back Irish comic David O’Doherty and rising star Luisa Omielan, who recently rewrote her whole act in the light of her mother’s death from cancer. SH When Rock Arrived in North Korea: Liberation Day: Storyville BBC Four, 11.00pm This hugely entertaining look at how Slovenian art rockers Laibach became the first Western band to play in North Korea works largely because of the eccentric Norwegian director Morten Traavik’s bureaucrat-wrangling skills. The band themselves prove elusive, although the concert footage hammers home just how odd the occasion was. “There are all kinds of music – now I know there’s this kind of music too,” notes one bemused attendee. SH Born to Be Free: Saving Russia’s Whales Channel 4, 11.25pm No documentary is likely to make you angrier this week than Gayane Petrosyan’s bleak and brilliant film about the trade in Beluga whales. She uncovers the terrible fates of 18 belugas bought to Utrish Marine Station to be sold to aquariums across the world. SH Rugby Union: Varsity Match: Oxford University v Cambridge University Thursday, BBC Two, 2.45pm The 136th staging of the annual contest between the two universities takes place at Twickenham. Cambridge prevailed last year to end Oxford’s record-breaking six-year winning streak, and have the superior head-to-head record with 62 wins to their opponents’ 59. The match kicks off at 3.00pm. SH Austin Powers: The Spy Who S*****d Me (1999) ★★★☆☆ Comedy Central, 9.00pm The successful franchise remains nothing more than daft entertainment, but its puerile jokes and cultural referencing still manage to elicit laughs. The “groovy” spy with the wonky teeth (Mike Myers) has his mojo stolen by his arch nemesis Dr Evil (also Myers) and must travel back in time to the swinging Sixties to get it back. Black Sea (2014) ★★★☆☆ Film4, 9.00pm Written by Dennis Kelly (who co-wrote the musical Matilda) and starring Jude Law, this submarine thriller about a hunt for Nazi gold in a long-lost U-boat is less than the sum of its parts. However, a host of decent character actors – the best of whom, David Threlfall, steals the show – keep things buoyant and the set piece outside the sub, involving aquatic spacesuits and bars of gold, is pulse-pinging. 16 Blocks (2006) ★★★☆☆ ITV4, 11.35pm Steered brilliantly by director Richard Donner (Superman, The Goonies) Bruce Willis plays Jack Mosley, a detective who’s assigned to escort prisoner Eddie Bunker (Mos Def) to a Grand Jury hearing in this frantic buddy-action film. This may sound simple, but Mosley’s colleagues don’t want Bunker to make it – because he’s a witness in a police corruption case that could bring their worlds crashing down. Friday 8 December Claire Foy in 'The Crown' The Crown Netflix, from today Expectations could hardly be higher for the return of Netflix’s most lavish series. Although the spectacle and horror of the war have passed, the era of Anthony Eden and Harold McMillan is arguably more intriguing for being less frequently dramatised, and Peter Morgan explores the hypocrisies and compromises inherent in the politics of a nation whose global influence is in decline. Anton Lesser makes a ruthless, discreet McMillan, while Jeremy Northam is once again superb as Eden, a man not low on self-confidence yet forced to face his limitations as the Suez Crisis sees him outmanoeuvred. But the focal point of course is the royal family, and specifically the relationship between Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip: fundamentally solid in its early years, but now subject to considerable stress and strain as the couple drift apart over niggling doubts and suspected betrayals. Claire Foy and Matt Smith are magnificent in the lead roles, rising to the challenges of Morgan’s script to make plausible his educated guesswork and speculations over long-rumoured private affairs. The blend of spectacle and attention to detail remains striking. Gabriel Tate The Grand Tour Amazon Prime Video, from today Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May return for a second go-round of megastar guests, big-budget stunts in exotic locales, and parochial studio chat. The series opens with Ricky Wilson v David Hasselhoff in new segment Celebrity Face Off, and a comparison of a Lamborghini, a hybrid Honda and an electric supercar in a hill-climb race that – as anyone who recalls the headlines from earlier this year will know – goes horribly wrong. GT Judge Rinder’s Crown Court ITV, 8.00pm Two daytime television classics, one ancient and one modern, collide in this bizarre two-parter which sees Judge Robert Rinder, mediator of petty domestic disputes, presiding over a fictional case of arsenic poisoning. As per the original Crown Court, the jurors are members of the public. GT Jamie and Jimmy’s Friday Night Feast Channel 4, 8.00pm The chefs meet a childhood hero as Mark Hamill, soon to return to cinemas as Luke Skywalker, joins them to learn about making perfect roast beef and Yorkshire puddings, plus a Caesar salad and a seafood feast. GT Brunel: the Man Who Built Britain Channel 5, 8.00pm A giant of the Industrial Revolution, Isambard Kingdom Brunel had a curious private life to match his towering professional achievements. The ever-reliable Rob Bell begins his two-part profile with Brunel’s first major project, the Thames Tunnel. GT The Year in Music 2017 BBC Two, 9.00pm The BBC Music Awards follow in the footsteps of BBC Sports Personality of the Year and incorporate a review of the year into the bargain. Here, Claudia Winkelman and Clara Amfo look back on the past 12 months with contributors including Stormzy, Nile Rodgers and Liam Gallagher. GT Classic Album: American Pie: Don McLean BBC Four, 9.00pm McLean’s sophomore album is these days less venerated than other landmarks of the era (Blue, Tapestry, After the Goldrush); it is perhaps overshadowed by its monumental title song whose allusive, elusive lyrics offered an alternate history of rock ’n’ roll and eulogy for the hippy dream. Yet there was always more to it, as this diligent documentary asserts. GT Prisoners (2013) ★★★☆☆ More4, 9.00pm This drama, which centres on the abduction of two girls, is harrowing but it succeeds in sustaining its tension to the end. Hugh Jackman is cast into darkness when his six-year-old daughter is kidnapped. Jake Gyllenhaal is the detective in charge of the case, and the pair lock horns early on. What we are then presented with is a criminal puzzle and a very committed cast, which also includes Terrence Howard. Legend (2015) ★★★☆☆ Film4, 9.00pm Tom Hardy gives a solid, convincing performance as east London gangster Reggie Kray but his caricatured portrayal of twin brother Ronnie lets him down, and his inconsistent performance leads to an entertaining though muddled film. Emily Browning, however, gives just the right mix of defiance and despair as Frances Shea, Reggie’s put-upon wife. Watch out for some particularly gory scenes. Dead Calm (1989) ★★★☆☆ W, 9.00pm In her first big film role, Nicole Kidman displays pluck and vulnerability as Rae Ingram, a woman who loses her infant son in a car accident, and consents to a long recovery at sea, on a luxury yacht called the Saracen. Her husband John (Sam Neill) is an experienced naval officer and stand-up guy, and though he knows banishing Rae’s guilt and grief is going to be tough, he has no idea what shock therapy fate has in mind. Television previewers Toby Dantzic, Catherine Gee, Simon Horsford, Sarah Hughes, Clive Morgan, Gerard O'Donovan, Vicki Power, Patrick Smith, Gabriel Tate and Rachel Ward

What's on TV tonight: Strictly, The X Factor final and Imagine: Rachel Whiteread

Saturday 2 December Imagine: Rachel Whiteread: Ghost in the Room BBC Two, 9.00pm Rachel Whiteread is an artist whose work, more than most, does not come across especially well on television given that it is about things that cannot be seen, dealing in negative spaces, absences and the intangibleness of memory. Now, 25 years after she made an impact alongside Damien Hirst, Tracey Emin and other Young British Artists, Whiteread is indisputably one of Britain’s most highly regarded sculptors. Her signature style, which usually take the form of concrete casts, remains one of the most recognisable in British art. Here, Alan Yentob takes the opportunity afforded by an ongoing major retrospective at the Tate to consider Whiteread’s artistic output. He pays particular attention to the controversy surrounding her 1993 Turner-winning piece, House – a full-scale “reproduction” of the interior volumes of a condemned terraced house in London’s East End. That remains, perhaps, Whiteread’s best-known work but there’s also an assessment of her wider impact, notably in representing Britain at the Venice Biennale, and her evocative “Nameless Library” Holocaust memorial in Vienna. Gerard O’Donovan Can We Live with Robots? Channel 4, 7.00pm One of the more intriguing films in the Rise of the Robots season sees choreographer Akram Khan research cutting-edge robotics in order to create a dance piece about “how humans and robots might come to share our world”. Well, it’s something different. GO Strictly Come Dancing BBC One, 7.05pm It is musicals week, and the six remaining contestants will be keen to make a big impression in what is traditionally one of the more ambitious Strictly rounds. There will, no doubt, be some razzle dazzle on the performances, and even the judges might take to the dance floor. GO The X Factor: Live final ITV, 7.05pm With its viewing figures dipping, it is perhaps foolhardy to kick off the final in the same time as Strictly. Still, that won’t stunt the excitement on stage as the finalists compete to be one of two acts put through to tomorrow’s deciding vote. GO Michael McIntyre’s Big Show BBC One, 8.10pm Stereophonics and Jessie J join McIntyre at the Theatre Royal, while former England footballer Alan Shearer gets to cringe from the sidelines as the comedian sends out a mortifying text message to all of the contacts in his phone. GO Hamilton: Building America History, 9.00pm Alexander Hamilton was one of America’s more overlooked founding fathers until Lin-Manuel Miranda’s genre-busting musical Hamilton conquered not only Broadway but the world. This two-hour recap of Hamilton’s life is considerably more ponderous than the musical, but it’s an absorbing account of a man who rose from a penniless West Indies’ orphan to be one of the most influential figures in George Washington’s fledgling US administration. GO Toots & the Maytals: From the Roots Sky Arts, 9.00pm The story of Jamaican musician Toots Hibbert (one of Rolling Stone magazine’s 100 greatest singers) who, with his pioneering band The Maytals, laid the foundations of reggae in the Sixties with hits such as Do the Reggay and, more widely, in albums such as the Seventies’ From the Roots. A terrific story with some great archive recordings. GO Live Premier League Football: Chelsea v Newcastle Sky Sports Main Event, 11.30am After a blip, which saw manager Antonio Conte’s job come under scrutiny, Chelsea’s form has improved in recent weeks (they have lost just one match in the last six in all competitions). And they will be looking to continue this form as they host Newcastle at Stamford Bridge. Newcastle winger Christian Atsu has been denied the chance to play against his former club after being ruled out with a thigh injury. This, along with the fact that the Magpies are also without captain Jamaal Lascelles and left-back Paul Dummett, could spell trouble for manager Rafa Benítez. The pressure is already mounting on the Spaniard as his inconsistent side are without a win in five matches, but he is confident that his team are turning things around. CM International Rugby Union: Wales v South Africa Saturday, BBC One, 2.00pm The autumn internationals come to an end at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff as Wales take on South Africa. Wales began their series with defeat to Australia, but showed glimpses of a new attacking style. They will be out to show this in full flow, especially now that they can utilise loose forward Taulupe Faletau, who has been released by his club Bath to play. With this boost, they are confident of defeating the Springboks side. CM Annie Claus Is Coming to Town (2011, TVM) ★★☆☆☆ Channel 5, 3.35pm This sweet made-for-TV movie borrows heavily from Elf and Enchanted, as Santa’s daughter Annie (Maria Thayer) leaves her home in the North Pole to discover the world. Landing in Los Angeles, she gets a job at an ailing toy shop, uses her cheer to turn the business around and falls for boss Ted (Samuel Page). Will he end up meeting her under the mistletoe? Wayne’s World (1992) ★★★★☆ Comedy Central, 6.00pm The wonder of Wayne’s World is the presence of the lovably idiotic duo Wayne and Garth (Mike Myers and Dana Carvey), who host an inept cable TV show and are exploited by a crooked businessman (Rob Lowe). The plot is a negligible ingredient: it’s all about the goofy repartee (“Schwing!”) – and the unforgettable in-car mime to Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody. The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2011) ★★★☆☆ Channel 4, 8.00pm Seven senior citizens (Maggie Smith, Judi Dench, Tom Wilkinson and Bill Nighy among them) travel from Britain to Jaipur, where they find the promised Exotic Marigold Hotel, run by Dev Patel, isn’t quite what they were expecting. The film is encumbered by too many interwoven stories and falls down on some wince-inducing clichés, but it’s hard to resist this cast of national treasures. Sunday 3 December Hayley Atwell in 'Howard's End' Howards End BBC One, 9.00pm The BBC’s adaptation of E M Forster’s classic comes to an end with a perfectly paced finale that remains true to its roots while also allowing us to see the story afresh. Much has already been said about Kenneth Lonergan’s astute take on Foster’s tale of the clash between the materialistic Wilcox family and the bohemian Schlegels, yet what really made this one such a joy to watch is his acute understanding of loneliness and unspoken yearning – something that is never clearer than in the beautifully restrained scenes between Matthew Macfadyen’s Henry Wilcox and Hayley Atwell’s Margaret Schlegel. Not that the triumph is Lonergan’s alone: Hettie McDonald directs with verve, making the old tale appear vibrant and fresh, while MacFadyen and Atwell are outstanding in the central roles. The cast as a whole has been wonderful, with praise reserved for Alex Lawther, who manages to make Tibby both irritating and admirable in his dedication to the hypochondriac life. If there is one complaint, it’s perhaps that the awkward Leonard Bast (Joseph Quinn) remains underwritten to the end, with Lonergan more interested in the relationship between the Schlegel sisters than in the would-be protégé they befriend. Sarah Hughes Love and Drugs on the Streets BBC Three, from 10.00am This excellent BBC series about a group of homeless women has been unbearably sad at times. The concluding episode sees chill autumn winds hit Brighton, bringing with it a host of new problems, particularly for Paige, who is struggling to cope without her daughter. SH Blue Planet II BBC One, 8.00pm As it visits the world’s coastlines, this episode of the nature series is among its most colourful yet. We see, among other things, sea lions demonstrate teamwork and follow leaping crabs as they try desperately to survive. As always, David Attenborough’s sonorous tones hold the whole thing together. SH Robot Wars BBC Two, 8.00pm It’s the final on the robot destruction show, and we’re promised the series’ biggest ever battle, during which of the 10 robots return to fight for the last place in the final. The victor of the “robot rumble” will then face the episode winners to see which machine is crowned champion. SH Coastal Railways with Julie Walters Channel 4, 8.00pm The actress heads to one of the UK’s most spectacular railway lines, the coastal stretch between Newcastle and Edinburgh. Walters is an engaging presence and, in addition to the gorgeous scenery, there are some fascinating facts, including the reason why the Balmoral Hotel’s clock runs slow. SH Expedition Volcano BBC Two, 9.00pm The final part of this enthralling documentary series sees the team head to volcano Nyamulagira in the Congo. The volcano erupts regularly but there is no monitoring of it, largely because militia groups have a heavy presence in the area. SH Babylon Berlin Sky Atlantic, 9.00pm & 10.00pm Series two of the big-budget take on Volker Kutscher’s novels begins, and things are not looking great for DI Gereon Rath (Volker Bruch), who finds himself increasingly alone in a city where it pays to have friends. SH The Frankenstein Chronicles ITV Encore, 10.00pm This rip-roaring adventure deserves a wider audience, not least because Sean Bean is on fine form as detective-turned-monster John Marlott. This week, Marlott receives the news he’s been waiting for: Daniel Hervey (Ed Stoppard) is alive. SH The Dam Busters (1954, b/w) ★★★★☆ ITV4, 2.25pm This is a much-loved film version of the Second World War air raid. The RAF are struggling to destroy German dams so engineer Barnes Wallis (Michael Redgrave) dreams up a bomb that can do the job. And it’s rather left field – the bomb will be dropped from a plane and bounce along the water like a skimmed stone. Lord of the Rings’s Peter Jackson is producing a modern remake, which is written by Stephen Fry. Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol (2011) ★★★☆☆ Channel 4, 9.00pm Tom Cruise rises to the challenge in this gravity-defying thrill ride. The plot surrounds Cruise with a gifted group of operatives, including faithful friend Benji (Simon Pegg), a lovely but platonic sidekick (Paula Patton), and an “enigmatic” new buddy (Jeremy Renner), who must collectively prevent a nuclear strike. Brad Bird directs. Taxi Tehran (2015) ★★★★☆ BBC Four, 11.00pm Jafar Panahi is one of Iran’s most newsworthy film-makers and this is one of his more playful pieces – not an example of firebrand activism, but a self-reflexive jeu d’esprit in which his smiling face anchors the tone. In a ride around the capital, Panahi likens the skills of a cabbie to those of a director keeping his film on course. There’s nods to other films but it’s an accessible entry-point to his work. Monday 4 December The Real Marigold on Tour The Real Marigold on Tour BBC One, 9.00pm; Scotland, 10.45pm After two series inwhich celebrities of pensionable age ventured to India to assess its potential as a retirement destination, some of the same stars of The Real Marigold Hotel travel to China and, next week, Cuba, for a taste of life there for the elderly (or for elderly people of certain means, at least). Miriam Margolyes, Rosemary Shrager, Bobby George and Wayne Sleep are the quartet wrangled to the capital of Sichuan Province, Chengdu, in a nation with 230 million over the age of 60. First impressions are dismayingly stereotypical – crazy traffic, linguistic entanglements, unenticing cuisine – but matters improve as they become more adventurous. Following a revelatory railway journey, they reach a country retreat and a Giant Panda sanctuary that proves transformative for some. After the poignancy and charm of the first two series proper, Real Marigold on Tour is a little underwhelming. The personality clashes are lacking and genuine insights are thin on the ground; if anything, there’s a slight jadedness to the whole enterprise. But the celebrities are by and large gracious guests and a pleasure to spend time with, for all their gleefully displayed foibles. Gabriel Tate Armchair Detectives BBC One, 2.15pm Susan Calman’s featherlight but entertaining take on Cluedo continues, as a team of amateur sleuths bid to solve the murder of a teacher in the town of Mortcliff. GT The Hairy Bikers Home for Christmas BBC One, 3.45pm Dave Myers and Si King are among the first television chefs of the year to jump on the festive bandwagon, beginning this new series with a few recipes for alternative Christmas treats: Austrian Linzertorte, roast goose and hazelnut chocolate brownie. GT Action Woman of the Year Awards BT Sport 2, 7.30pm Clare Balding hosts the fifth annual ceremony celebrating women in sport, with Wimbledon semi-finalist Johanna Konta and England footballer Jodie Taylor among the nominees for the night’s big award. GT Employable Me BBC Two, 9.00pm Two young people, one with cerebral palsy and the other with a visual impairment, seek the help of psychologist Nancy Doyle to gain the confidence to re-enter the jobs market after difficult past experiences. This is another stirring instalment in the award-winning documentary series. GT The Art that Made Mexico: Paradise, Power and Prayers BBC Four, 9.00pm In the first of a three-part documentary series, artist Alinka Echeverria examines the geographical forces that have shaped Mexican art, and in particular the different perspectives taken on the nation’s landscape from the Spanish Conquest of the 16th century through to independence in 1900. GT Concorde: Designing the Dream Channel 5, 9.00pm The Anglo-French venture beat the Soviets and Americans, at the peak of their Cold War rivalry, to build the first supersonic passenger airliner. This accessible, enjoyable two-part documentary traces the unlikely success story with the help of key players including Michael Heseltine. GT Edgar Allen Poe: Buried Alive PBS America, 9.00pm Kathleen Turner and Denis O’Hare are several cuts above this usual reconstruction hacks in this imaginative film exploring the troubled life and startling work of one of American literature’s most disturbing talents. GT The Untouchables (1987) ★★★★☆ Sky Cinema Greats, 8.00pm Brian De Palma’s gripping Prohibition-era crime drama, based (loosely) on the memoirs of FBI agent Eliot Ness (Kevin Costner), follows Ness’s attempts to stop the ruthless mobster Al Capone (Robert De Niro, gaining 30 pounds for the role) and his gang of suave cronies. Luckily he also has incorruptible Irish cop Jimmy Malone, played by an Oscar-winning Sean Connery, on his side. The Maze Runner (2014) ★★★★☆ Film4, 9.00pm A group of teenage boys live in a meadow at the heart of a giant labyrinth: no one knows why they’re there, or what lies beyond the maze’s shifting walls, until the arrival of 16-year-old Thomas (Dylan O’Brien) precipitates a push for freedom. This lean, tense adaptation of James Dashner’s sci-fi series makes good on its wildly intriguing premise and has more than a hint of Lord of the Flies. Live and Let Die (1973) ★★★☆☆ ITV4, 9.00pm James Bond (Roger Moore) battles one of his more extraordinary opponents, Kananga (Yaphet Kotto), a Caribbean criminal mastermind masquerading as a Harlem drug baron. The film was given lukewarm reviews on its release, but this is Moore-era Bond at its preposterous best. Highlights include 007’s voodoo snake ordeal and a thrilling speedboat chase through New Orleans. Tuesday 5 December Finding Me A Family: - Jo and Mark Find Me a Family Channel 4, 9.00pm Having started in the US, adoption activity days began in the UK six years ago with the idea of allowing potential parents to meet children waiting to be adopted. But many have also been concerned that the events were little more than “beauty pageants” that would make the children feel rejected if they weren’t chosen (traditionally children are matched via written descriptions and photos). This rewarding documentary follows an event in the Midlands organised by the charity Coram. With more than 2,000 children on the adoption register in the UK, it’s clear from this heart-tugging film that every option is worth exploring ­­­­­– and the days are now seen as a success with one in four of the children being adopted. It follows 13 prospective adopters (who are advised “not cry in front of the kids”) and 10 children – and their remarkable foster carers – as they meet at a jungle-themed party. Among them are six-year-old Demi and her three younger brothers (sibling groups are more difficult to place – so this may be their last chance of remaining together), and Mark and Jo, who have six children of their own but feel that “If we’ve got it to offer, why can’t we offer it to children that need it?” SH Kirstie’s Handmade Christmas Channel 4, 8.00pm How you do make sure your Christmas presents, food and decorations “outstrip the smuggest Instagrammer”? Kirstie Allsopp has some suggestions as she shows how to make everything from “schmaltzy, upcycled” diorama tree baubles to miniature Danish cakes. SH The A Word BBC One, 9.00pm In the penultimate episode of Peter Bowker’s skilful and well-rounded drama, Paul (Lee Ingleby) has issues with a video made about his son (Max Vento) by his ex-sister-in-law, nurse Nicola (Vinette Robinson) which attempts to show the spectrum of his autism. SH Invasion! With Sam Willis BBC Four, 9.00pm In historian Sam Willis’s entertaining three-parter, he explores the battles for Britain over the millennia from the Romans, Saxons and Vikings to the “ones you’ve heard of”. It’s a story of myth, reality, climate change and DNA allied to a question of whether there has ever been a “true British people”. Willis begins with the farming invasion 6,000 years ago. SH David Jason’s Secret Service More4, 9.00pm The world evoked by John Buchan, John le Carré and Len Deighton is examined by actor and espionage enthusiast David Jason in this new three-part series about real-life spooks and spies. In the opener, Jason looks back to the beginnings of the British Secret Service in the early 20th century, learning of undercover missions and crack spies. He hears too of the role of a maverick spymaster during the First World War and the Belgian refugees who were Britain’s first secret agents. SH Motherland BBC Two, 10.00pm; NI, 11.15pm Trying to win a coveting spot in a school-run car pool, the rights and wrongs of potpourri and a revelation about a threesome are all thrown into the mix in this episode of this bitingly observant series. As ever, put-upon mother Julia (Anna Maxwell Martin) is at the forefront. Extraordinary Teens: My Gay Life Channel 4, 10.00pm Billy, who realised he was gay at the age of seven, began documenting his life after attending Gay Pride in Brighton as Lady Gaga when he was 11. Six years later, this resulting documentary is a revealing insight into the highs and lows of growing up in Billy’s world. SH The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (1970) ★★★★☆ TCM, 6.30pm English actor Robert Stephens makes a louche, witty Holmes, Colin Blakely a delightful Watson while Geneviève Page adds a tingle of sex appeal as an Irene Adler-like femme fatale to whom the great consulting detective becomes dangerously attracted. Billy Wilder’s endearing film, ostensibly a parody, is seen by many as an important influence on the BBC’s Sherlock series. The Choir (2014) ★★★☆☆ Film4, 6.55pm Dustin Hoffman gives a wonderfully minor-key performance as a tough-love choirmaster in François Girard’s affecting drama. It’s a triumph-over-adversity picture, the adversity being the disadvantaged background of a gifted 11-year-old called Stet (newcomer Garrett Wareing), whose alcoholic single mother in Odessa, Texas dies in a first-reel car crash. Eddie Izzard and Kathy Bates co-star. Bullitt (1968) ★★★☆☆ ITV4, 11.35pm This is the film that made Steve McQueen a superstar and revolutionised the car chase with its 10-minute split-screen, edge-of-your-seat race through San Francisco. McQueen plays hard-nosed, icy-cool cop Frank Bullitt, who is assigned to protect Mafia informant Johnny Ross (Pat Renella), until a pair of hit men scupper his plans. The final pursuit at the airport inspired a similar sequence in Michael Mann’s Heat. Wednesday 6 December Paul Anderson in 'Peaky Blinders' Peaky Blinders BBC Two, 9.00pm We’re midway through the fourth series and Peaky Blinders seems set on going down the path of self-parody, such is the high tide of blood, violence and criminality that it’s unleashed so far. Gore-spattered, finely choreographed excess, however, has always been a large part of its appeal, and this series’ addition of a to-the-death vendetta with Italian-American mafiosi on the mean streets of Birmingham certainly allows such excess to be delivered by the bucketload. If Adrien Brody, channelling the mumbling ghost of Don Corleone in his portrayal of the toothpick-sucking mafia boss Luca Changretta, teeters on the brink of pantomime, at least the devil’s deal that he brokered with Polly (Helen McCrory) in last week’s climactic moments captured the spine-tingling shiver of betrayal that it needed to convince. That’s where this week’s action-packed episode picks up, with the Shelby gang breaking out the weaponry again ahead of another suspected ambush, while Tommy’s (Cillian Murphy) efforts to find a regular bedmate focus on May Carleton (Charlotte Riley). And his new sideline as a boxing promoter, prompts the reappearance of old rival Alfie Solomons (Tom Hardy). Gerard O’Donovan Mary Berry’s Country House Secrets BBC One, 8.00pm On her third stately home excursion Mary Berry visits Powderham Castle, Devon, to spend time with a recently moved in family reinventing their family seat for the 21st century, and to cook up some mouthwatering woodland-inspired treats for a magical Midsummer’s Eve party. GO The Secret Life of the Zoo Channel 4, 8.00pm One of Chester’s onagers (or wild asses, if you prefer) gets over-excited when, after two years waiting, he’s allowed near the females during mating season. And turtle Charlie is showing signs of stress despite his seemingly leisurely pace of life. GO Machines of War Yesterday, 8.00pm The first in a new three-part series unpicking some of the most advanced military hardware on the planet explores the technology behind the devastatingly deadly Tomahawk Cruise missile. It’s a weapon that, after decades on the design bench, has become the West’s remote weapon of choice, capable of striking targets up to 2,500 kilometres away with terrifying accuracy. GO The Apprentice BBC One, 9.00pm It’s the candidates’ last chance to impress before next week’s terrifying interview round. And what an opportunity to shine, when they’re asked to organise a high-end catwalk show and come up with a cover feature to show off the work of up-and-coming fashion designers. GO The Channel: The World’s Busiest Waterway Channel 4, 9.00pm It’s not so much life on the ocean wave as under the seabed in this episode focusing on the complex work of the engineers responsible for keeping rail traffic moving through the Channel Tunnel safely and efficiently. GO Dian Fossey: Secrets in the Mist National Geographic, 9.00pm Pieced together from Dian Fossey’s own writings and over 40 hours of film footage, this terrific documentary looks back over the life and legacy of the dedicated American primatologist and conservationist who did so much – even to the point of being murdered – to save the Rwandan mountain gorilla from extinction. Fossey’s words are voiced by Sigourney Weaver, who brought her work to prominence in the award-winning 1988 film Gorillas in the Mist. GO Champions League Football: Liverpool v Spartak Moscow BT Sport 2, 7.45pm Liverpool and Spartak Moscow go head to head with a place in the Champions League knockout stages up for grabs. Liverpool have the advantage, knowing that they only need one point to qualify from Group E and that victory will guarantee them the top spot, regardless of how Sevilla get on against Maribor. Spartak must go all out for the win and despite the loss of Russian international Dmitri Kombarov, Massimo Carrera’s side will be buoyed by a gutsy victory over Zenit which extended their unbeaten run to 11 matches. CM Prometheus (2012) ★★★★☆ E4, 9.00pm Ridley Scott finds ways to push a genre into queasy new places with this majestic, lime-splattered, blood-spurting science-fiction adventure – a prequel to his 1979 Alien. After discovering cave paintings which point to a location in space, archaeologists Shaw (Noomi Rapace) and Holloway (Logan Marshall-Green) lead a mission to discover our ancestors. Michael Fassbender co-stars as an enigmatic android. Legally Blonde (2001) ★★★★☆ 5STAR, 11.00pm This was the moment that Reese Witherspoon entered global consciousness, and no amount of Oscar-winning turns will separate her from ditsy blonde sorority girl Elle Woods. Of course, Elle isn’t really ditsy, she turns out to be a legal eagle, which is the whole point of Australian director Robert Luketic’s first film: the revelatory observation that blondes can also have brains. The dialogue is fabulously sharp-edged. Boy (2010) ★★★★☆ Film4, 11.20pm New Zealand’s Taika Waititi has just directed Hollywood blockbuster Thor: Ragnarok, but this tender coming-of-age comedy was the indie debut that cemented his reputation for being a smart and funny talent. Set in 1984, it follows Boy (James Rolleston), an 11-year-old dreamer in a deprived rural community who worships his criminal father (Waititi) and imagines that he is a close relation of his other hero, Michael Jackson. Thursday 7 December 'Catching a Killer' Catching a Killer: A Bullet Through The Window Channel 4, 9.00pm The most striking thing about Catching a Killer, Channel 4’s ongoing look at how police murder and missing persons investigations work, is the level of access involved. This film follows the fallout from the death of 19-year-old Suhaib Mohammed. It begins with the terrified 999 call stating “My friend just got shot” and ends with the eventual arrest of his killers. Along the way a complex story emerges of a naive teenager who drifted away from his family and whose death was a terrible case of being in the wrong place with the wrong people. It’s Senior Investigating Officer Mike Lynch’s last case before retirement and one he’s therefore doubly determined to solve, but as the investigation continues so his quiet fury over the way in which the dead teenager’s death is dismissed as just another gang death increases. As always though, it is the testimony of the victim’s family which lingers longest. “We knew he’d become more distant, more private, more closed off but I don’t think we realised he was hanging with the wrong people,” says his sister quietly. His devastated father simply notes: “His heart was very soft… he had big dreams.” Sarah Hughes Ross Noble: Off Road Dave, 8.00pm As fans of his previous Dave series (Ross Noble Freewheeling) can tell you, the comedian is a true petrolhead. However, even the enthusiastic Noble might have bitten off more than he can chew this time as he attempts the Scottish Six Days Trial, an event where the world’s best motorbike riders race 100 miles every day across unforgiving terrain. SH Love, Lies & Records BBC One, 9.00pm Kay Mellor’s enjoyable drama continues with Judy (Rebecca Front) sending Rob (Adrian Bower) a video of his fiancé Kate’s (Ashley Jensen) “moment of madness” with Rick (Kenny Doughty) – but can Kate get to it first? SH Blitz: The Bombs That Changed Britain BBC Two, 9.00pm This week’s focus is Scotland, where a series of Luftwaffe raids over three nights in March 1941 devastated a community, killing 528 people, including 15 members of the same family. For the tightknit society of shipbuilders and factory workers, the aftermath was devastating; many left Clydebank, never to return. SH Live at the Apollo BBC Two, 10.00pm Our host is the sharp, smart and amiable Nish Kumar. He’s joined by the laid-back Irish comic David O’Doherty and rising star Luisa Omielan, who recently rewrote her whole act in the light of her mother’s death from cancer. SH When Rock Arrived in North Korea: Liberation Day: Storyville BBC Four, 11.00pm This hugely entertaining look at how Slovenian art rockers Laibach became the first Western band to play in North Korea works largely because of the eccentric Norwegian director Morten Traavik’s bureaucrat-wrangling skills. The band themselves prove elusive, although the concert footage hammers home just how odd the occasion was. “There are all kinds of music – now I know there’s this kind of music too,” notes one bemused attendee. SH Born to Be Free: Saving Russia’s Whales Channel 4, 11.25pm No documentary is likely to make you angrier this week than Gayane Petrosyan’s bleak and brilliant film about the trade in Beluga whales. She uncovers the terrible fates of 18 belugas bought to Utrish Marine Station to be sold to aquariums across the world. SH Rugby Union: Varsity Match: Oxford University v Cambridge University Thursday, BBC Two, 2.45pm The 136th staging of the annual contest between the two universities takes place at Twickenham. Cambridge prevailed last year to end Oxford’s record-breaking six-year winning streak, and have the superior head-to-head record with 62 wins to their opponents’ 59. The match kicks off at 3.00pm. SH Austin Powers: The Spy Who S*****d Me (1999) ★★★☆☆ Comedy Central, 9.00pm The successful franchise remains nothing more than daft entertainment, but its puerile jokes and cultural referencing still manage to elicit laughs. The “groovy” spy with the wonky teeth (Mike Myers) has his mojo stolen by his arch nemesis Dr Evil (also Myers) and must travel back in time to the swinging Sixties to get it back. Black Sea (2014) ★★★☆☆ Film4, 9.00pm Written by Dennis Kelly (who co-wrote the musical Matilda) and starring Jude Law, this submarine thriller about a hunt for Nazi gold in a long-lost U-boat is less than the sum of its parts. However, a host of decent character actors – the best of whom, David Threlfall, steals the show – keep things buoyant and the set piece outside the sub, involving aquatic spacesuits and bars of gold, is pulse-pinging. 16 Blocks (2006) ★★★☆☆ ITV4, 11.35pm Steered brilliantly by director Richard Donner (Superman, The Goonies) Bruce Willis plays Jack Mosley, a detective who’s assigned to escort prisoner Eddie Bunker (Mos Def) to a Grand Jury hearing in this frantic buddy-action film. This may sound simple, but Mosley’s colleagues don’t want Bunker to make it – because he’s a witness in a police corruption case that could bring their worlds crashing down. Friday 8 December Claire Foy in 'The Crown' The Crown Netflix, from today Expectations could hardly be higher for the return of Netflix’s most lavish series. Although the spectacle and horror of the war have passed, the era of Anthony Eden and Harold McMillan is arguably more intriguing for being less frequently dramatised, and Peter Morgan explores the hypocrisies and compromises inherent in the politics of a nation whose global influence is in decline. Anton Lesser makes a ruthless, discreet McMillan, while Jeremy Northam is once again superb as Eden, a man not low on self-confidence yet forced to face his limitations as the Suez Crisis sees him outmanoeuvred. But the focal point of course is the royal family, and specifically the relationship between Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip: fundamentally solid in its early years, but now subject to considerable stress and strain as the couple drift apart over niggling doubts and suspected betrayals. Claire Foy and Matt Smith are magnificent in the lead roles, rising to the challenges of Morgan’s script to make plausible his educated guesswork and speculations over long-rumoured private affairs. The blend of spectacle and attention to detail remains striking. Gabriel Tate The Grand Tour Amazon Prime Video, from today Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May return for a second go-round of megastar guests, big-budget stunts in exotic locales, and parochial studio chat. The series opens with Ricky Wilson v David Hasselhoff in new segment Celebrity Face Off, and a comparison of a Lamborghini, a hybrid Honda and an electric supercar in a hill-climb race that – as anyone who recalls the headlines from earlier this year will know – goes horribly wrong. GT Judge Rinder’s Crown Court ITV, 8.00pm Two daytime television classics, one ancient and one modern, collide in this bizarre two-parter which sees Judge Robert Rinder, mediator of petty domestic disputes, presiding over a fictional case of arsenic poisoning. As per the original Crown Court, the jurors are members of the public. GT Jamie and Jimmy’s Friday Night Feast Channel 4, 8.00pm The chefs meet a childhood hero as Mark Hamill, soon to return to cinemas as Luke Skywalker, joins them to learn about making perfect roast beef and Yorkshire puddings, plus a Caesar salad and a seafood feast. GT Brunel: the Man Who Built Britain Channel 5, 8.00pm A giant of the Industrial Revolution, Isambard Kingdom Brunel had a curious private life to match his towering professional achievements. The ever-reliable Rob Bell begins his two-part profile with Brunel’s first major project, the Thames Tunnel. GT The Year in Music 2017 BBC Two, 9.00pm The BBC Music Awards follow in the footsteps of BBC Sports Personality of the Year and incorporate a review of the year into the bargain. Here, Claudia Winkelman and Clara Amfo look back on the past 12 months with contributors including Stormzy, Nile Rodgers and Liam Gallagher. GT Classic Album: American Pie: Don McLean BBC Four, 9.00pm McLean’s sophomore album is these days less venerated than other landmarks of the era (Blue, Tapestry, After the Goldrush); it is perhaps overshadowed by its monumental title song whose allusive, elusive lyrics offered an alternate history of rock ’n’ roll and eulogy for the hippy dream. Yet there was always more to it, as this diligent documentary asserts. GT Prisoners (2013) ★★★☆☆ More4, 9.00pm This drama, which centres on the abduction of two girls, is harrowing but it succeeds in sustaining its tension to the end. Hugh Jackman is cast into darkness when his six-year-old daughter is kidnapped. Jake Gyllenhaal is the detective in charge of the case, and the pair lock horns early on. What we are then presented with is a criminal puzzle and a very committed cast, which also includes Terrence Howard. Legend (2015) ★★★☆☆ Film4, 9.00pm Tom Hardy gives a solid, convincing performance as east London gangster Reggie Kray but his caricatured portrayal of twin brother Ronnie lets him down, and his inconsistent performance leads to an entertaining though muddled film. Emily Browning, however, gives just the right mix of defiance and despair as Frances Shea, Reggie’s put-upon wife. Watch out for some particularly gory scenes. Dead Calm (1989) ★★★☆☆ W, 9.00pm In her first big film role, Nicole Kidman displays pluck and vulnerability as Rae Ingram, a woman who loses her infant son in a car accident, and consents to a long recovery at sea, on a luxury yacht called the Saracen. Her husband John (Sam Neill) is an experienced naval officer and stand-up guy, and though he knows banishing Rae’s guilt and grief is going to be tough, he has no idea what shock therapy fate has in mind. Television previewers Toby Dantzic, Catherine Gee, Simon Horsford, Sarah Hughes, Clive Morgan, Gerard O'Donovan, Vicki Power, Patrick Smith, Gabriel Tate and Rachel Ward

What's on TV tonight: The Graham Norton Show and Sounds Like Friday Night

Friday 1 December The Graham Norton Show BBC One, 10.35pm; NI, 11.05pm Graham Norton remains the best chat show host on British television, even if one or two of his line-ups this season have failed to generate much in the way of sparks. (The recent edition featuring only the cast of Ken Branagh’s new Agatha Christie movie Murder on the Orient Express could have been bottled and sold as a soporific, despite all of the star names on display.) Happily that’s unlikely to be a problem here as most of his guests are blessed with some of the biggest and most-often utilised mouths in showbiz. Elton John is on hand to promote his latest greatest hits collection, and will perhaps have plenty to say about ITV’s recent poll of the British public’s 20 favourite songs from his rather extensive back catalogue. Stephen Fry will doubtless be as mesmerising as ever as he discusses his new book on Greek mythology; and Robbie Williams might make some noise about his new album, Under the Radar Volume 2, and upcoming Heavy Entertainment tour. All in all, you have to wonder how demure actress Carey Mulligan will manage to get a word in edgeways on the subject of her terrific new Netflix film Mudbound, although we’re confident she will. Gerard O’Donovan Dark Netflix, from today “The question is not where, or who, or how…but when?” This creepy time-bending thriller, about the disappearance of two German boys over a 30-year interval, plays with the idea of how fractured relationships repeat time and again. Voyeur Netflix, from today This controversial documentary explores one of veteran US writer Gay Talese’s most sensational pieces of “literary journalism”, The Voyeur’s Motel. It told the story of how, in the Eighties, Gerald Foos opened a motel supposedly for the sole purpose of peeping on guests. But how much of the tale was made up? Sounds Like Friday Night BBC One, 7.30pm Singer Rita Ora joins regular presenters Greg James and Dotty as guest host at the BBC’s White City studios to introduce, among others, Brighton rock duo Royal Blood. Australian Wilderness with Ray Mears ITV, 8.00pm; not STV, UTV or Wales In the series’ finale Mears ends his epic journey in the ancient Walpole Forest, a vast swathe of primordial wilderness in Western Australia. He’s in search of the forest’s famed giant tingle and karri trees but the smaller denizens – such as the elusive quokka – are just as amazing. Jamie and Jimmy’s Friday Night Feast Channel 4, 8.00pm Jamie Oliver and Jimmy Doherty’s pier-end café goes fully vegetarian in honour of guest Joanna Lumley, who revives the tastes of her childhood by cooking the King of Malaysia’s favourite dish. Meanwhile, the childhood friends go on the road to champion British fava beans, and Doherty designs a vertical vegetable patch – perfect for the high-rise balcony. Britain’s Greatest Bridges Channel 5, 8.00pm The series concludes with the story of the feat of engineering that is the mile-long Severn Bridge and how its designer Bill Brown revolutionised modern bridge design with its aerodynamic box girder deck. GO Truth Tellers at the BBC BBC Four, 11.00pm Friday night is music night on BBC Four, and this new archive series adds depth to its line-up by showcasing clips of the most lyrically gifted songwriters to have performed on the BBC. These include Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell and Patti Smith. GO The King’s Speech (2010) More4, 9.00pm ★★★★☆ Tom Hooper’s film about the future George VI’s struggle to overcome his stammer in the nation’s hour of need won multiple Oscars, including a deserved Best Actor gong for Colin Firth. But it’s his double-act with Geoffrey Rush as his speech therapist Lionel Logue that gives the film its heart, and the double-handers between them are fraught and fascinating. Helena Bonham Carter is perhaps underused as the Duchess of York. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2008) ITV4, 11.40pm ★★★☆☆ This is Tim Burton’s adaptation of Stephen Sondheim’s 1979 musical about the demon barber of Fleet Street. Johnny Depp plays Benjamin Barker, a revenge artist who wields his razors with merry abandon in 19th-century London with the help of the deliciously sinister Mrs Lovett (Helena Bonham Carter). Alan Rickman plays the deplorable Judge Turpin. Wild (2014) Channel 4, 12.10am ★★★★☆ The Pacific Crest Trail, which runs up the entire western spine of the United States, is a challenge of fabled arduousness and rugged beauty. In 1995, aged 26, Cheryl Strayed (played by a superb Reese Witherspoon) walked it, to get clearance in her head after a decade of loss and personal meltdown. Wild powerfully reveals Strayed’s terrors and pleasures as she forges ahead on the journey. Saturday 2 December Artist Rachel Whiteread Credit: Dan Kitwood Imagine: Rachel Whiteread: Ghost in the Room BBC Two, 9.00pm Rachel Whiteread is an artist whose work, more than most, does not come across especially well on television given that it is about things that cannot be seen, dealing in negative spaces, absences and the intangibleness of memory. Now, 25 years after she made an impact alongside Damien Hirst, Tracey Emin and other Young British Artists, Whiteread is indisputably one of Britain’s most highly regarded sculptors. Her signature style, which usually take the form of concrete casts, remains one of the most recognisable in British art. Here, Alan Yentob takes the opportunity afforded by an ongoing major retrospective at the Tate to consider Whiteread’s artistic output. He pays particular attention to the controversy surrounding her 1993 Turner-winning piece, House – a full-scale “reproduction” of the interior volumes of a condemned terraced house in London’s East End. That remains, perhaps, Whiteread’s best-known work but there’s also an assessment of her wider impact, notably in representing Britain at the Venice Biennale, and her evocative “Nameless Library” Holocaust memorial in Vienna. Gerard O’Donovan Can We Live with Robots? Channel 4, 7.00pm One of the more intriguing films in the Rise of the Robots season sees choreographer Akram Khan research cutting-edge robotics in order to create a dance piece about “how humans and robots might come to share our world”. Well, it’s something different. GO Strictly Come Dancing BBC One, 7.05pm It is musicals week, and the six remaining contestants will be keen to make a big impression in what is traditionally one of the more ambitious Strictly rounds. There will, no doubt, be some razzle dazzle on the performances, and even the judges might take to the dance floor. GO The X Factor: Live final ITV, 7.05pm With its viewing figures dipping, it is perhaps foolhardy to kick off the final in the same time as Strictly. Still, that won’t stunt the excitement on stage as the finalists compete to be one of two acts put through to tomorrow’s deciding vote. GO Michael McIntyre’s Big Show BBC One, 8.10pm Stereophonics and Jessie J join McIntyre at the Theatre Royal, while former England footballer Alan Shearer gets to cringe from the sidelines as the comedian sends out a mortifying text message to all of the contacts in his phone. GO Hamilton: Building America History, 9.00pm Alexander Hamilton was one of America’s more overlooked founding fathers until Lin-Manuel Miranda’s genre-busting musical Hamilton conquered not only Broadway but the world. This two-hour recap of Hamilton’s life is considerably more ponderous than the musical, but it’s an absorbing account of a man who rose from a penniless West Indies’ orphan to be one of the most influential figures in George Washington’s fledgling US administration. GO Toots & the Maytals: From the Roots Sky Arts, 9.00pm The story of Jamaican musician Toots Hibbert (one of Rolling Stone magazine’s 100 greatest singers) who, with his pioneering band The Maytals, laid the foundations of reggae in the Sixties with hits such as Do the Reggay and, more widely, in albums such as the Seventies’ From the Roots. A terrific story with some great archive recordings. GO Live Premier League Football: Chelsea v Newcastle Sky Sports Main Event, 11.30am After a blip, which saw manager Antonio Conte’s job come under scrutiny, Chelsea’s form has improved in recent weeks (they have lost just one match in the last six in all competitions). And they will be looking to continue this form as they host Newcastle at Stamford Bridge. Newcastle winger Christian Atsu has been denied the chance to play against his former club after being ruled out with a thigh injury. This, along with the fact that the Magpies are also without captain Jamaal Lascelles and left-back Paul Dummett, could spell trouble for manager Rafa Benítez. The pressure is already mounting on the Spaniard as his inconsistent side are without a win in five matches, but he is confident that his team are turning things around. CM International Rugby Union: Wales v South Africa Saturday, BBC One, 2.00pm The autumn internationals come to an end at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff as Wales take on South Africa. Wales began their series with defeat to Australia, but showed glimpses of a new attacking style. They will be out to show this in full flow, especially now that they can utilise loose forward Taulupe Faletau, who has been released by his club Bath to play. With this boost, they are confident of defeating the Springboks side. CM Annie Claus Is Coming to Town (2011, TVM) ★★☆☆☆ Channel 5, 3.35pm This sweet made-for-TV movie borrows heavily from Elf and Enchanted, as Santa’s daughter Annie (Maria Thayer) leaves her home in the North Pole to discover the world. Landing in Los Angeles, she gets a job at an ailing toy shop, uses her cheer to turn the business around and falls for boss Ted (Samuel Page). Will he end up meeting her under the mistletoe? Wayne’s World (1992) ★★★★☆ Comedy Central, 6.00pm The wonder of Wayne’s World is the presence of the lovably idiotic duo Wayne and Garth (Mike Myers and Dana Carvey), who host an inept cable TV show and are exploited by a crooked businessman (Rob Lowe). The plot is a negligible ingredient: it’s all about the goofy repartee (“Schwing!”) – and the unforgettable in-car mime to Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody. The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2011) ★★★☆☆ Channel 4, 8.00pm Seven senior citizens (Maggie Smith, Judi Dench, Tom Wilkinson and Bill Nighy among them) travel from Britain to Jaipur, where they find the promised Exotic Marigold Hotel, run by Dev Patel, isn’t quite what they were expecting. The film is encumbered by too many interwoven stories and falls down on some wince-inducing clichés, but it’s hard to resist this cast of national treasures. Sunday 3 December Hayley Atwell in 'Howard's End' Howards End BBC One, 9.00pm The BBC’s adaptation of E M Forster’s classic comes to an end with a perfectly paced finale that remains true to its roots while also allowing us to see the story afresh. Much has already been said about Kenneth Lonergan’s astute take on Foster’s tale of the clash between the materialistic Wilcox family and the bohemian Schlegels, yet what really made this one such a joy to watch is his acute understanding of loneliness and unspoken yearning – something that is never clearer than in the beautifully restrained scenes between Matthew Macfadyen’s Henry Wilcox and Hayley Atwell’s Margaret Schlegel. Not that the triumph is Lonergan’s alone: Hettie McDonald directs with verve, making the old tale appear vibrant and fresh, while MacFadyen and Atwell are outstanding in the central roles. The cast as a whole has been wonderful, with praise reserved for Alex Lawther, who manages to make Tibby both irritating and admirable in his dedication to the hypochondriac life. If there is one complaint, it’s perhaps that the awkward Leonard Bast (Joseph Quinn) remains underwritten to the end, with Lonergan more interested in the relationship between the Schlegel sisters than in the would-be protégé they befriend. Sarah Hughes Love and Drugs on the Streets BBC Three, from 10.00am This excellent BBC series about a group of homeless women has been unbearably sad at times. The concluding episode sees chill autumn winds hit Brighton, bringing with it a host of new problems, particularly for Paige, who is struggling to cope without her daughter. SH Blue Planet II BBC One, 8.00pm As it visits the world’s coastlines, this episode of the nature series is among its most colourful yet. We see, among other things, sea lions demonstrate teamwork and follow leaping crabs as they try desperately to survive. As always, David Attenborough’s sonorous tones hold the whole thing together. SH Robot Wars BBC Two, 8.00pm It’s the final on the robot destruction show, and we’re promised the series’ biggest ever battle, during which of the 10 robots return to fight for the last place in the final. The victor of the “robot rumble” will then face the episode winners to see which machine is crowned champion. SH Coastal Railways with Julie Walters Channel 4, 8.00pm The actress heads to one of the UK’s most spectacular railway lines, the coastal stretch between Newcastle and Edinburgh. Walters is an engaging presence and, in addition to the gorgeous scenery, there are some fascinating facts, including the reason why the Balmoral Hotel’s clock runs slow. SH Expedition Volcano BBC Two, 9.00pm The final part of this enthralling documentary series sees the team head to volcano Nyamulagira in the Congo. The volcano erupts regularly but there is no monitoring of it, largely because militia groups have a heavy presence in the area. SH Babylon Berlin Sky Atlantic, 9.00pm & 10.00pm Series two of the big-budget take on Volker Kutscher’s novels begins, and things are not looking great for DI Gereon Rath (Volker Bruch), who finds himself increasingly alone in a city where it pays to have friends. SH The Frankenstein Chronicles ITV Encore, 10.00pm This rip-roaring adventure deserves a wider audience, not least because Sean Bean is on fine form as detective-turned-monster John Marlott. This week, Marlott receives the news he’s been waiting for: Daniel Hervey (Ed Stoppard) is alive. SH The Dam Busters (1954, b/w) ★★★★☆ ITV4, 2.25pm This is a much-loved film version of the Second World War air raid. The RAF are struggling to destroy German dams so engineer Barnes Wallis (Michael Redgrave) dreams up a bomb that can do the job. And it’s rather left field – the bomb will be dropped from a plane and bounce along the water like a skimmed stone. Lord of the Rings’s Peter Jackson is producing a modern remake, which is written by Stephen Fry. Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol (2011) ★★★☆☆ Channel 4, 9.00pm Tom Cruise rises to the challenge in this gravity-defying thrill ride. The plot surrounds Cruise with a gifted group of operatives, including faithful friend Benji (Simon Pegg), a lovely but platonic sidekick (Paula Patton), and an “enigmatic” new buddy (Jeremy Renner), who must collectively prevent a nuclear strike. Brad Bird directs. Taxi Tehran (2015) ★★★★☆ BBC Four, 11.00pm Jafar Panahi is one of Iran’s most newsworthy film-makers and this is one of his more playful pieces – not an example of firebrand activism, but a self-reflexive jeu d’esprit in which his smiling face anchors the tone. In a ride around the capital, Panahi likens the skills of a cabbie to those of a director keeping his film on course. There’s nods to other films but it’s an accessible entry-point to his work. Monday 4 December The Real Marigold on Tour The Real Marigold on Tour BBC One, 9.00pm; Scotland, 10.45pm After two series inwhich celebrities of pensionable age ventured to India to assess its potential as a retirement destination, some of the same stars of The Real Marigold Hotel travel to China and, next week, Cuba, for a taste of life there for the elderly (or for elderly people of certain means, at least). Miriam Margolyes, Rosemary Shrager, Bobby George and Wayne Sleep are the quartet wrangled to the capital of Sichuan Province, Chengdu, in a nation with 230 million over the age of 60. First impressions are dismayingly stereotypical – crazy traffic, linguistic entanglements, unenticing cuisine – but matters improve as they become more adventurous. Following a revelatory railway journey, they reach a country retreat and a Giant Panda sanctuary that proves transformative for some. After the poignancy and charm of the first two series proper, Real Marigold on Tour is a little underwhelming. The personality clashes are lacking and genuine insights are thin on the ground; if anything, there’s a slight jadedness to the whole enterprise. But the celebrities are by and large gracious guests and a pleasure to spend time with, for all their gleefully displayed foibles. Gabriel Tate Armchair Detectives BBC One, 2.15pm Susan Calman’s featherlight but entertaining take on Cluedo continues, as a team of amateur sleuths bid to solve the murder of a teacher in the town of Mortcliff. GT The Hairy Bikers Home for Christmas BBC One, 3.45pm Dave Myers and Si King are among the first television chefs of the year to jump on the festive bandwagon, beginning this new series with a few recipes for alternative Christmas treats: Austrian Linzertorte, roast goose and hazelnut chocolate brownie. GT Action Woman of the Year Awards BT Sport 2, 7.30pm Clare Balding hosts the fifth annual ceremony celebrating women in sport, with Wimbledon semi-finalist Johanna Konta and England footballer Jodie Taylor among the nominees for the night’s big award. GT Employable Me BBC Two, 9.00pm Two young people, one with cerebral palsy and the other with a visual impairment, seek the help of psychologist Nancy Doyle to gain the confidence to re-enter the jobs market after difficult past experiences. This is another stirring instalment in the award-winning documentary series. GT The Art that Made Mexico: Paradise, Power and Prayers BBC Four, 9.00pm In the first of a three-part documentary series, artist Alinka Echeverria examines the geographical forces that have shaped Mexican art, and in particular the different perspectives taken on the nation’s landscape from the Spanish Conquest of the 16th century through to independence in 1900. GT Concorde: Designing the Dream Channel 5, 9.00pm The Anglo-French venture beat the Soviets and Americans, at the peak of their Cold War rivalry, to build the first supersonic passenger airliner. This accessible, enjoyable two-part documentary traces the unlikely success story with the help of key players including Michael Heseltine. GT Edgar Allen Poe: Buried Alive PBS America, 9.00pm Kathleen Turner and Denis O’Hare are several cuts above this usual reconstruction hacks in this imaginative film exploring the troubled life and startling work of one of American literature’s most disturbing talents. GT The Untouchables (1987) ★★★★☆ Sky Cinema Greats, 8.00pm Brian De Palma’s gripping Prohibition-era crime drama, based (loosely) on the memoirs of FBI agent Eliot Ness (Kevin Costner), follows Ness’s attempts to stop the ruthless mobster Al Capone (Robert De Niro, gaining 30 pounds for the role) and his gang of suave cronies. Luckily he also has incorruptible Irish cop Jimmy Malone, played by an Oscar-winning Sean Connery, on his side. The Maze Runner (2014) ★★★★☆ Film4, 9.00pm A group of teenage boys live in a meadow at the heart of a giant labyrinth: no one knows why they’re there, or what lies beyond the maze’s shifting walls, until the arrival of 16-year-old Thomas (Dylan O’Brien) precipitates a push for freedom. This lean, tense adaptation of James Dashner’s sci-fi series makes good on its wildly intriguing premise and has more than a hint of Lord of the Flies. Live and Let Die (1973) ★★★☆☆ ITV4, 9.00pm James Bond (Roger Moore) battles one of his more extraordinary opponents, Kananga (Yaphet Kotto), a Caribbean criminal mastermind masquerading as a Harlem drug baron. The film was given lukewarm reviews on its release, but this is Moore-era Bond at its preposterous best. Highlights include 007’s voodoo snake ordeal and a thrilling speedboat chase through New Orleans. Tuesday 5 December Finding Me A Family: - Jo and Mark Find Me a Family Channel 4, 9.00pm Having started in the US, adoption activity days began in the UK six years ago with the idea of allowing potential parents to meet children waiting to be adopted. But many have also been concerned that the events were little more than “beauty pageants” that would make the children feel rejected if they weren’t chosen (traditionally children are matched via written descriptions and photos). This rewarding documentary follows an event in the Midlands organised by the charity Coram. With more than 2,000 children on the adoption register in the UK, it’s clear from this heart-tugging film that every option is worth exploring ­­­­­– and the days are now seen as a success with one in four of the children being adopted. It follows 13 prospective adopters (who are advised “not cry in front of the kids”) and 10 children – and their remarkable foster carers – as they meet at a jungle-themed party. Among them are six-year-old Demi and her three younger brothers (sibling groups are more difficult to place – so this may be their last chance of remaining together), and Mark and Jo, who have six children of their own but feel that “If we’ve got it to offer, why can’t we offer it to children that need it?” SH Kirstie’s Handmade Christmas Channel 4, 8.00pm How you do make sure your Christmas presents, food and decorations “outstrip the smuggest Instagrammer”? Kirstie Allsopp has some suggestions as she shows how to make everything from “schmaltzy, upcycled” diorama tree baubles to miniature Danish cakes. SH The A Word BBC One, 9.00pm In the penultimate episode of Peter Bowker’s skilful and well-rounded drama, Paul (Lee Ingleby) has issues with a video made about his son (Max Vento) by his ex-sister-in-law, nurse Nicola (Vinette Robinson) which attempts to show the spectrum of his autism. SH Invasion! With Sam Willis BBC Four, 9.00pm In historian Sam Willis’s entertaining three-parter, he explores the battles for Britain over the millennia from the Romans, Saxons and Vikings to the “ones you’ve heard of”. It’s a story of myth, reality, climate change and DNA allied to a question of whether there has ever been a “true British people”. Willis begins with the farming invasion 6,000 years ago. SH David Jason’s Secret Service More4, 9.00pm The world evoked by John Buchan, John le Carré and Len Deighton is examined by actor and espionage enthusiast David Jason in this new three-part series about real-life spooks and spies. In the opener, Jason looks back to the beginnings of the British Secret Service in the early 20th century, learning of undercover missions and crack spies. He hears too of the role of a maverick spymaster during the First World War and the Belgian refugees who were Britain’s first secret agents. SH Motherland BBC Two, 10.00pm; NI, 11.15pm Trying to win a coveting spot in a school-run car pool, the rights and wrongs of potpourri and a revelation about a threesome are all thrown into the mix in this episode of this bitingly observant series. As ever, put-upon mother Julia (Anna Maxwell Martin) is at the forefront. Extraordinary Teens: My Gay Life Channel 4, 10.00pm Billy, who realised he was gay at the age of seven, began documenting his life after attending Gay Pride in Brighton as Lady Gaga when he was 11. Six years later, this resulting documentary is a revealing insight into the highs and lows of growing up in Billy’s world. SH The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (1970) ★★★★☆ TCM, 6.30pm English actor Robert Stephens makes a louche, witty Holmes, Colin Blakely a delightful Watson while Geneviève Page adds a tingle of sex appeal as an Irene Adler-like femme fatale to whom the great consulting detective becomes dangerously attracted. Billy Wilder’s endearing film, ostensibly a parody, is seen by many as an important influence on the BBC’s Sherlock series. The Choir (2014) ★★★☆☆ Film4, 6.55pm Dustin Hoffman gives a wonderfully minor-key performance as a tough-love choirmaster in François Girard’s affecting drama. It’s a triumph-over-adversity picture, the adversity being the disadvantaged background of a gifted 11-year-old called Stet (newcomer Garrett Wareing), whose alcoholic single mother in Odessa, Texas dies in a first-reel car crash. Eddie Izzard and Kathy Bates co-star. Bullitt (1968) ★★★☆☆ ITV4, 11.35pm This is the film that made Steve McQueen a superstar and revolutionised the car chase with its 10-minute split-screen, edge-of-your-seat race through San Francisco. McQueen plays hard-nosed, icy-cool cop Frank Bullitt, who is assigned to protect Mafia informant Johnny Ross (Pat Renella), until a pair of hit men scupper his plans. The final pursuit at the airport inspired a similar sequence in Michael Mann’s Heat. Wednesday 6 December Paul Anderson in 'Peaky Blinders' Peaky Blinders BBC Two, 9.00pm We’re midway through the fourth series and Peaky Blinders seems set on going down the path of self-parody, such is the high tide of blood, violence and criminality that it’s unleashed so far. Gore-spattered, finely choreographed excess, however, has always been a large part of its appeal, and this series’ addition of a to-the-death vendetta with Italian-American mafiosi on the mean streets of Birmingham certainly allows such excess to be delivered by the bucketload. If Adrien Brody, channelling the mumbling ghost of Don Corleone in his portrayal of the toothpick-sucking mafia boss Luca Changretta, teeters on the brink of pantomime, at least the devil’s deal that he brokered with Polly (Helen McCrory) in last week’s climactic moments captured the spine-tingling shiver of betrayal that it needed to convince. That’s where this week’s action-packed episode picks up, with the Shelby gang breaking out the weaponry again ahead of another suspected ambush, while Tommy’s (Cillian Murphy) efforts to find a regular bedmate focus on May Carleton (Charlotte Riley). And his new sideline as a boxing promoter, prompts the reappearance of old rival Alfie Solomons (Tom Hardy). Gerard O’Donovan Mary Berry’s Country House Secrets BBC One, 8.00pm On her third stately home excursion Mary Berry visits Powderham Castle, Devon, to spend time with a recently moved in family reinventing their family seat for the 21st century, and to cook up some mouthwatering woodland-inspired treats for a magical Midsummer’s Eve party. GO The Secret Life of the Zoo Channel 4, 8.00pm One of Chester’s onagers (or wild asses, if you prefer) gets over-excited when, after two years waiting, he’s allowed near the females during mating season. And turtle Charlie is showing signs of stress despite his seemingly leisurely pace of life. GO Machines of War Yesterday, 8.00pm The first in a new three-part series unpicking some of the most advanced military hardware on the planet explores the technology behind the devastatingly deadly Tomahawk Cruise missile. It’s a weapon that, after decades on the design bench, has become the West’s remote weapon of choice, capable of striking targets up to 2,500 kilometres away with terrifying accuracy. GO The Apprentice BBC One, 9.00pm It’s the candidates’ last chance to impress before next week’s terrifying interview round. And what an opportunity to shine, when they’re asked to organise a high-end catwalk show and come up with a cover feature to show off the work of up-and-coming fashion designers. GO The Channel: The World’s Busiest Waterway Channel 4, 9.00pm It’s not so much life on the ocean wave as under the seabed in this episode focusing on the complex work of the engineers responsible for keeping rail traffic moving through the Channel Tunnel safely and efficiently. GO Dian Fossey: Secrets in the Mist National Geographic, 9.00pm Pieced together from Dian Fossey’s own writings and over 40 hours of film footage, this terrific documentary looks back over the life and legacy of the dedicated American primatologist and conservationist who did so much – even to the point of being murdered – to save the Rwandan mountain gorilla from extinction. Fossey’s words are voiced by Sigourney Weaver, who brought her work to prominence in the award-winning 1988 film Gorillas in the Mist. GO Champions League Football: Liverpool v Spartak Moscow BT Sport 2, 7.45pm Liverpool and Spartak Moscow go head to head with a place in the Champions League knockout stages up for grabs. Liverpool have the advantage, knowing that they only need one point to qualify from Group E and that victory will guarantee them the top spot, regardless of how Sevilla get on against Maribor. Spartak must go all out for the win and despite the loss of Russian international Dmitri Kombarov, Massimo Carrera’s side will be buoyed by a gutsy victory over Zenit which extended their unbeaten run to 11 matches. CM Prometheus (2012) ★★★★☆ E4, 9.00pm Ridley Scott finds ways to push a genre into queasy new places with this majestic, lime-splattered, blood-spurting science-fiction adventure – a prequel to his 1979 Alien. After discovering cave paintings which point to a location in space, archaeologists Shaw (Noomi Rapace) and Holloway (Logan Marshall-Green) lead a mission to discover our ancestors. Michael Fassbender co-stars as an enigmatic android. Legally Blonde (2001) ★★★★☆ 5STAR, 11.00pm This was the moment that Reese Witherspoon entered global consciousness, and no amount of Oscar-winning turns will separate her from ditsy blonde sorority girl Elle Woods. Of course, Elle isn’t really ditsy, she turns out to be a legal eagle, which is the whole point of Australian director Robert Luketic’s first film: the revelatory observation that blondes can also have brains. The dialogue is fabulously sharp-edged. Boy (2010) ★★★★☆ Film4, 11.20pm New Zealand’s Taika Waititi has just directed Hollywood blockbuster Thor: Ragnarok, but this tender coming-of-age comedy was the indie debut that cemented his reputation for being a smart and funny talent. Set in 1984, it follows Boy (James Rolleston), an 11-year-old dreamer in a deprived rural community who worships his criminal father (Waititi) and imagines that he is a close relation of his other hero, Michael Jackson. Thursday 7 December 'Catching a Killer' Catching a Killer: A Bullet Through The Window Channel 4, 9.00pm The most striking thing about Catching a Killer, Channel 4’s ongoing look at how police murder and missing persons investigations work, is the level of access involved. This film follows the fallout from the death of 19-year-old Suhaib Mohammed. It begins with the terrified 999 call stating “My friend just got shot” and ends with the eventual arrest of his killers. Along the way a complex story emerges of a naive teenager who drifted away from his family and whose death was a terrible case of being in the wrong place with the wrong people. It’s Senior Investigating Officer Mike Lynch’s last case before retirement and one he’s therefore doubly determined to solve, but as the investigation continues so his quiet fury over the way in which the dead teenager’s death is dismissed as just another gang death increases. As always though, it is the testimony of the victim’s family which lingers longest. “We knew he’d become more distant, more private, more closed off but I don’t think we realised he was hanging with the wrong people,” says his sister quietly. His devastated father simply notes: “His heart was very soft… he had big dreams.” Sarah Hughes Ross Noble: Off Road Dave, 8.00pm As fans of his previous Dave series (Ross Noble Freewheeling) can tell you, the comedian is a true petrolhead. However, even the enthusiastic Noble might have bitten off more than he can chew this time as he attempts the Scottish Six Days Trial, an event where the world’s best motorbike riders race 100 miles every day across unforgiving terrain. SH Love, Lies & Records BBC One, 9.00pm Kay Mellor’s enjoyable drama continues with Judy (Rebecca Front) sending Rob (Adrian Bower) a video of his fiancé Kate’s (Ashley Jensen) “moment of madness” with Rick (Kenny Doughty) – but can Kate get to it first? SH Blitz: The Bombs That Changed Britain BBC Two, 9.00pm This week’s focus is Scotland, where a series of Luftwaffe raids over three nights in March 1941 devastated a community, killing 528 people, including 15 members of the same family. For the tightknit society of shipbuilders and factory workers, the aftermath was devastating; many left Clydebank, never to return. SH Live at the Apollo BBC Two, 10.00pm Our host is the sharp, smart and amiable Nish Kumar. He’s joined by the laid-back Irish comic David O’Doherty and rising star Luisa Omielan, who recently rewrote her whole act in the light of her mother’s death from cancer. SH When Rock Arrived in North Korea: Liberation Day: Storyville BBC Four, 11.00pm This hugely entertaining look at how Slovenian art rockers Laibach became the first Western band to play in North Korea works largely because of the eccentric Norwegian director Morten Traavik’s bureaucrat-wrangling skills. The band themselves prove elusive, although the concert footage hammers home just how odd the occasion was. “There are all kinds of music – now I know there’s this kind of music too,” notes one bemused attendee. SH Born to Be Free: Saving Russia’s Whales Channel 4, 11.25pm No documentary is likely to make you angrier this week than Gayane Petrosyan’s bleak and brilliant film about the trade in Beluga whales. She uncovers the terrible fates of 18 belugas bought to Utrish Marine Station to be sold to aquariums across the world. SH Rugby Union: Varsity Match: Oxford University v Cambridge University Thursday, BBC Two, 2.45pm The 136th staging of the annual contest between the two universities takes place at Twickenham. Cambridge prevailed last year to end Oxford’s record-breaking six-year winning streak, and have the superior head-to-head record with 62 wins to their opponents’ 59. The match kicks off at 3.00pm. SH Austin Powers: The Spy Who S*****d Me (1999) ★★★☆☆ Comedy Central, 9.00pm The successful franchise remains nothing more than daft entertainment, but its puerile jokes and cultural referencing still manage to elicit laughs. The “groovy” spy with the wonky teeth (Mike Myers) has his mojo stolen by his arch nemesis Dr Evil (also Myers) and must travel back in time to the swinging Sixties to get it back. Black Sea (2014) ★★★☆☆ Film4, 9.00pm Written by Dennis Kelly (who co-wrote the musical Matilda) and starring Jude Law, this submarine thriller about a hunt for Nazi gold in a long-lost U-boat is less than the sum of its parts. However, a host of decent character actors – the best of whom, David Threlfall, steals the show – keep things buoyant and the set piece outside the sub, involving aquatic spacesuits and bars of gold, is pulse-pinging. 16 Blocks (2006) ★★★☆☆ ITV4, 11.35pm Steered brilliantly by director Richard Donner (Superman, The Goonies) Bruce Willis plays Jack Mosley, a detective who’s assigned to escort prisoner Eddie Bunker (Mos Def) to a Grand Jury hearing in this frantic buddy-action film. This may sound simple, but Mosley’s colleagues don’t want Bunker to make it – because he’s a witness in a police corruption case that could bring their worlds crashing down. Friday 8 December Claire Foy in 'The Crown' The Crown Netflix, from today Expectations could hardly be higher for the return of Netflix’s most lavish series. Although the spectacle and horror of the war have passed, the era of Anthony Eden and Harold McMillan is arguably more intriguing for being less frequently dramatised, and Peter Morgan explores the hypocrisies and compromises inherent in the politics of a nation whose global influence is in decline. Anton Lesser makes a ruthless, discreet McMillan, while Jeremy Northam is once again superb as Eden, a man not low on self-confidence yet forced to face his limitations as the Suez Crisis sees him outmanoeuvred. But the focal point of course is the royal family, and specifically the relationship between Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip: fundamentally solid in its early years, but now subject to considerable stress and strain as the couple drift apart over niggling doubts and suspected betrayals. Claire Foy and Matt Smith are magnificent in the lead roles, rising to the challenges of Morgan’s script to make plausible his educated guesswork and speculations over long-rumoured private affairs. The blend of spectacle and attention to detail remains striking. Gabriel Tate The Grand Tour Amazon Prime Video, from today Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May return for a second go-round of megastar guests, big-budget stunts in exotic locales, and parochial studio chat. The series opens with Ricky Wilson v David Hasselhoff in new segment Celebrity Face Off, and a comparison of a Lamborghini, a hybrid Honda and an electric supercar in a hill-climb race that – as anyone who recalls the headlines from earlier this year will know – goes horribly wrong. GT Judge Rinder’s Crown Court ITV, 8.00pm Two daytime television classics, one ancient and one modern, collide in this bizarre two-parter which sees Judge Robert Rinder, mediator of petty domestic disputes, presiding over a fictional case of arsenic poisoning. As per the original Crown Court, the jurors are members of the public. GT Jamie and Jimmy’s Friday Night Feast Channel 4, 8.00pm The chefs meet a childhood hero as Mark Hamill, soon to return to cinemas as Luke Skywalker, joins them to learn about making perfect roast beef and Yorkshire puddings, plus a Caesar salad and a seafood feast. GT Brunel: the Man Who Built Britain Channel 5, 8.00pm A giant of the Industrial Revolution, Isambard Kingdom Brunel had a curious private life to match his towering professional achievements. The ever-reliable Rob Bell begins his two-part profile with Brunel’s first major project, the Thames Tunnel. GT The Year in Music 2017 BBC Two, 9.00pm The BBC Music Awards follow in the footsteps of BBC Sports Personality of the Year and incorporate a review of the year into the bargain. Here, Claudia Winkelman and Clara Amfo look back on the past 12 months with contributors including Stormzy, Nile Rodgers and Liam Gallagher. GT Classic Album: American Pie: Don McLean BBC Four, 9.00pm McLean’s sophomore album is these days less venerated than other landmarks of the era (Blue, Tapestry, After the Goldrush); it is perhaps overshadowed by its monumental title song whose allusive, elusive lyrics offered an alternate history of rock ’n’ roll and eulogy for the hippy dream. Yet there was always more to it, as this diligent documentary asserts. GT Prisoners (2013) ★★★☆☆ More4, 9.00pm This drama, which centres on the abduction of two girls, is harrowing but it succeeds in sustaining its tension to the end. Hugh Jackman is cast into darkness when his six-year-old daughter is kidnapped. Jake Gyllenhaal is the detective in charge of the case, and the pair lock horns early on. What we are then presented with is a criminal puzzle and a very committed cast, which also includes Terrence Howard. Legend (2015) ★★★☆☆ Film4, 9.00pm Tom Hardy gives a solid, convincing performance as east London gangster Reggie Kray but his caricatured portrayal of twin brother Ronnie lets him down, and his inconsistent performance leads to an entertaining though muddled film. Emily Browning, however, gives just the right mix of defiance and despair as Frances Shea, Reggie’s put-upon wife. Watch out for some particularly gory scenes. Dead Calm (1989) ★★★☆☆ W, 9.00pm In her first big film role, Nicole Kidman displays pluck and vulnerability as Rae Ingram, a woman who loses her infant son in a car accident, and consents to a long recovery at sea, on a luxury yacht called the Saracen. Her husband John (Sam Neill) is an experienced naval officer and stand-up guy, and though he knows banishing Rae’s guilt and grief is going to be tough, he has no idea what shock therapy fate has in mind. Television previewers Toby Dantzic, Catherine Gee, Simon Horsford, Sarah Hughes, Clive Morgan, Gerard O'Donovan, Vicki Power, Patrick Smith, Gabriel Tate and Rachel Ward

What's on TV tonight: The Graham Norton Show and Sounds Like Friday Night

Friday 1 December The Graham Norton Show BBC One, 10.35pm; NI, 11.05pm Graham Norton remains the best chat show host on British television, even if one or two of his line-ups this season have failed to generate much in the way of sparks. (The recent edition featuring only the cast of Ken Branagh’s new Agatha Christie movie Murder on the Orient Express could have been bottled and sold as a soporific, despite all of the star names on display.) Happily that’s unlikely to be a problem here as most of his guests are blessed with some of the biggest and most-often utilised mouths in showbiz. Elton John is on hand to promote his latest greatest hits collection, and will perhaps have plenty to say about ITV’s recent poll of the British public’s 20 favourite songs from his rather extensive back catalogue. Stephen Fry will doubtless be as mesmerising as ever as he discusses his new book on Greek mythology; and Robbie Williams might make some noise about his new album, Under the Radar Volume 2, and upcoming Heavy Entertainment tour. All in all, you have to wonder how demure actress Carey Mulligan will manage to get a word in edgeways on the subject of her terrific new Netflix film Mudbound, although we’re confident she will. Gerard O’Donovan Dark Netflix, from today “The question is not where, or who, or how…but when?” This creepy time-bending thriller, about the disappearance of two German boys over a 30-year interval, plays with the idea of how fractured relationships repeat time and again. Voyeur Netflix, from today This controversial documentary explores one of veteran US writer Gay Talese’s most sensational pieces of “literary journalism”, The Voyeur’s Motel. It told the story of how, in the Eighties, Gerald Foos opened a motel supposedly for the sole purpose of peeping on guests. But how much of the tale was made up? Sounds Like Friday Night BBC One, 7.30pm Singer Rita Ora joins regular presenters Greg James and Dotty as guest host at the BBC’s White City studios to introduce, among others, Brighton rock duo Royal Blood. Australian Wilderness with Ray Mears ITV, 8.00pm; not STV, UTV or Wales In the series’ finale Mears ends his epic journey in the ancient Walpole Forest, a vast swathe of primordial wilderness in Western Australia. He’s in search of the forest’s famed giant tingle and karri trees but the smaller denizens – such as the elusive quokka – are just as amazing. Jamie and Jimmy’s Friday Night Feast Channel 4, 8.00pm Jamie Oliver and Jimmy Doherty’s pier-end café goes fully vegetarian in honour of guest Joanna Lumley, who revives the tastes of her childhood by cooking the King of Malaysia’s favourite dish. Meanwhile, the childhood friends go on the road to champion British fava beans, and Doherty designs a vertical vegetable patch – perfect for the high-rise balcony. Britain’s Greatest Bridges Channel 5, 8.00pm The series concludes with the story of the feat of engineering that is the mile-long Severn Bridge and how its designer Bill Brown revolutionised modern bridge design with its aerodynamic box girder deck. GO Truth Tellers at the BBC BBC Four, 11.00pm Friday night is music night on BBC Four, and this new archive series adds depth to its line-up by showcasing clips of the most lyrically gifted songwriters to have performed on the BBC. These include Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell and Patti Smith. GO The King’s Speech (2010) More4, 9.00pm ★★★★☆ Tom Hooper’s film about the future George VI’s struggle to overcome his stammer in the nation’s hour of need won multiple Oscars, including a deserved Best Actor gong for Colin Firth. But it’s his double-act with Geoffrey Rush as his speech therapist Lionel Logue that gives the film its heart, and the double-handers between them are fraught and fascinating. Helena Bonham Carter is perhaps underused as the Duchess of York. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2008) ITV4, 11.40pm ★★★☆☆ This is Tim Burton’s adaptation of Stephen Sondheim’s 1979 musical about the demon barber of Fleet Street. Johnny Depp plays Benjamin Barker, a revenge artist who wields his razors with merry abandon in 19th-century London with the help of the deliciously sinister Mrs Lovett (Helena Bonham Carter). Alan Rickman plays the deplorable Judge Turpin. Wild (2014) Channel 4, 12.10am ★★★★☆ The Pacific Crest Trail, which runs up the entire western spine of the United States, is a challenge of fabled arduousness and rugged beauty. In 1995, aged 26, Cheryl Strayed (played by a superb Reese Witherspoon) walked it, to get clearance in her head after a decade of loss and personal meltdown. Wild powerfully reveals Strayed’s terrors and pleasures as she forges ahead on the journey. Saturday 2 December Artist Rachel Whiteread Credit: Dan Kitwood Imagine: Rachel Whiteread: Ghost in the Room BBC Two, 9.00pm Rachel Whiteread is an artist whose work, more than most, does not come across especially well on television given that it is about things that cannot be seen, dealing in negative spaces, absences and the intangibleness of memory. Now, 25 years after she made an impact alongside Damien Hirst, Tracey Emin and other Young British Artists, Whiteread is indisputably one of Britain’s most highly regarded sculptors. Her signature style, which usually take the form of concrete casts, remains one of the most recognisable in British art. Here, Alan Yentob takes the opportunity afforded by an ongoing major retrospective at the Tate to consider Whiteread’s artistic output. He pays particular attention to the controversy surrounding her 1993 Turner-winning piece, House – a full-scale “reproduction” of the interior volumes of a condemned terraced house in London’s East End. That remains, perhaps, Whiteread’s best-known work but there’s also an assessment of her wider impact, notably in representing Britain at the Venice Biennale, and her evocative “Nameless Library” Holocaust memorial in Vienna. Gerard O’Donovan Can We Live with Robots? Channel 4, 7.00pm One of the more intriguing films in the Rise of the Robots season sees choreographer Akram Khan research cutting-edge robotics in order to create a dance piece about “how humans and robots might come to share our world”. Well, it’s something different. GO Strictly Come Dancing BBC One, 7.05pm It is musicals week, and the six remaining contestants will be keen to make a big impression in what is traditionally one of the more ambitious Strictly rounds. There will, no doubt, be some razzle dazzle on the performances, and even the judges might take to the dance floor. GO The X Factor: Live final ITV, 7.05pm With its viewing figures dipping, it is perhaps foolhardy to kick off the final in the same time as Strictly. Still, that won’t stunt the excitement on stage as the finalists compete to be one of two acts put through to tomorrow’s deciding vote. GO Michael McIntyre’s Big Show BBC One, 8.10pm Stereophonics and Jessie J join McIntyre at the Theatre Royal, while former England footballer Alan Shearer gets to cringe from the sidelines as the comedian sends out a mortifying text message to all of the contacts in his phone. GO Hamilton: Building America History, 9.00pm Alexander Hamilton was one of America’s more overlooked founding fathers until Lin-Manuel Miranda’s genre-busting musical Hamilton conquered not only Broadway but the world. This two-hour recap of Hamilton’s life is considerably more ponderous than the musical, but it’s an absorbing account of a man who rose from a penniless West Indies’ orphan to be one of the most influential figures in George Washington’s fledgling US administration. GO Toots & the Maytals: From the Roots Sky Arts, 9.00pm The story of Jamaican musician Toots Hibbert (one of Rolling Stone magazine’s 100 greatest singers) who, with his pioneering band The Maytals, laid the foundations of reggae in the Sixties with hits such as Do the Reggay and, more widely, in albums such as the Seventies’ From the Roots. A terrific story with some great archive recordings. GO Live Premier League Football: Chelsea v Newcastle Sky Sports Main Event, 11.30am After a blip, which saw manager Antonio Conte’s job come under scrutiny, Chelsea’s form has improved in recent weeks (they have lost just one match in the last six in all competitions). And they will be looking to continue this form as they host Newcastle at Stamford Bridge. Newcastle winger Christian Atsu has been denied the chance to play against his former club after being ruled out with a thigh injury. This, along with the fact that the Magpies are also without captain Jamaal Lascelles and left-back Paul Dummett, could spell trouble for manager Rafa Benítez. The pressure is already mounting on the Spaniard as his inconsistent side are without a win in five matches, but he is confident that his team are turning things around. CM International Rugby Union: Wales v South Africa Saturday, BBC One, 2.00pm The autumn internationals come to an end at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff as Wales take on South Africa. Wales began their series with defeat to Australia, but showed glimpses of a new attacking style. They will be out to show this in full flow, especially now that they can utilise loose forward Taulupe Faletau, who has been released by his club Bath to play. With this boost, they are confident of defeating the Springboks side. CM Annie Claus Is Coming to Town (2011, TVM) ★★☆☆☆ Channel 5, 3.35pm This sweet made-for-TV movie borrows heavily from Elf and Enchanted, as Santa’s daughter Annie (Maria Thayer) leaves her home in the North Pole to discover the world. Landing in Los Angeles, she gets a job at an ailing toy shop, uses her cheer to turn the business around and falls for boss Ted (Samuel Page). Will he end up meeting her under the mistletoe? Wayne’s World (1992) ★★★★☆ Comedy Central, 6.00pm The wonder of Wayne’s World is the presence of the lovably idiotic duo Wayne and Garth (Mike Myers and Dana Carvey), who host an inept cable TV show and are exploited by a crooked businessman (Rob Lowe). The plot is a negligible ingredient: it’s all about the goofy repartee (“Schwing!”) – and the unforgettable in-car mime to Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody. The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2011) ★★★☆☆ Channel 4, 8.00pm Seven senior citizens (Maggie Smith, Judi Dench, Tom Wilkinson and Bill Nighy among them) travel from Britain to Jaipur, where they find the promised Exotic Marigold Hotel, run by Dev Patel, isn’t quite what they were expecting. The film is encumbered by too many interwoven stories and falls down on some wince-inducing clichés, but it’s hard to resist this cast of national treasures. Sunday 3 December Hayley Atwell in 'Howard's End' Howards End BBC One, 9.00pm The BBC’s adaptation of E M Forster’s classic comes to an end with a perfectly paced finale that remains true to its roots while also allowing us to see the story afresh. Much has already been said about Kenneth Lonergan’s astute take on Foster’s tale of the clash between the materialistic Wilcox family and the bohemian Schlegels, yet what really made this one such a joy to watch is his acute understanding of loneliness and unspoken yearning – something that is never clearer than in the beautifully restrained scenes between Matthew Macfadyen’s Henry Wilcox and Hayley Atwell’s Margaret Schlegel. Not that the triumph is Lonergan’s alone: Hettie McDonald directs with verve, making the old tale appear vibrant and fresh, while MacFadyen and Atwell are outstanding in the central roles. The cast as a whole has been wonderful, with praise reserved for Alex Lawther, who manages to make Tibby both irritating and admirable in his dedication to the hypochondriac life. If there is one complaint, it’s perhaps that the awkward Leonard Bast (Joseph Quinn) remains underwritten to the end, with Lonergan more interested in the relationship between the Schlegel sisters than in the would-be protégé they befriend. Sarah Hughes Love and Drugs on the Streets BBC Three, from 10.00am This excellent BBC series about a group of homeless women has been unbearably sad at times. The concluding episode sees chill autumn winds hit Brighton, bringing with it a host of new problems, particularly for Paige, who is struggling to cope without her daughter. SH Blue Planet II BBC One, 8.00pm As it visits the world’s coastlines, this episode of the nature series is among its most colourful yet. We see, among other things, sea lions demonstrate teamwork and follow leaping crabs as they try desperately to survive. As always, David Attenborough’s sonorous tones hold the whole thing together. SH Robot Wars BBC Two, 8.00pm It’s the final on the robot destruction show, and we’re promised the series’ biggest ever battle, during which of the 10 robots return to fight for the last place in the final. The victor of the “robot rumble” will then face the episode winners to see which machine is crowned champion. SH Coastal Railways with Julie Walters Channel 4, 8.00pm The actress heads to one of the UK’s most spectacular railway lines, the coastal stretch between Newcastle and Edinburgh. Walters is an engaging presence and, in addition to the gorgeous scenery, there are some fascinating facts, including the reason why the Balmoral Hotel’s clock runs slow. SH Expedition Volcano BBC Two, 9.00pm The final part of this enthralling documentary series sees the team head to volcano Nyamulagira in the Congo. The volcano erupts regularly but there is no monitoring of it, largely because militia groups have a heavy presence in the area. SH Babylon Berlin Sky Atlantic, 9.00pm & 10.00pm Series two of the big-budget take on Volker Kutscher’s novels begins, and things are not looking great for DI Gereon Rath (Volker Bruch), who finds himself increasingly alone in a city where it pays to have friends. SH The Frankenstein Chronicles ITV Encore, 10.00pm This rip-roaring adventure deserves a wider audience, not least because Sean Bean is on fine form as detective-turned-monster John Marlott. This week, Marlott receives the news he’s been waiting for: Daniel Hervey (Ed Stoppard) is alive. SH The Dam Busters (1954, b/w) ★★★★☆ ITV4, 2.25pm This is a much-loved film version of the Second World War air raid. The RAF are struggling to destroy German dams so engineer Barnes Wallis (Michael Redgrave) dreams up a bomb that can do the job. And it’s rather left field – the bomb will be dropped from a plane and bounce along the water like a skimmed stone. Lord of the Rings’s Peter Jackson is producing a modern remake, which is written by Stephen Fry. Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol (2011) ★★★☆☆ Channel 4, 9.00pm Tom Cruise rises to the challenge in this gravity-defying thrill ride. The plot surrounds Cruise with a gifted group of operatives, including faithful friend Benji (Simon Pegg), a lovely but platonic sidekick (Paula Patton), and an “enigmatic” new buddy (Jeremy Renner), who must collectively prevent a nuclear strike. Brad Bird directs. Taxi Tehran (2015) ★★★★☆ BBC Four, 11.00pm Jafar Panahi is one of Iran’s most newsworthy film-makers and this is one of his more playful pieces – not an example of firebrand activism, but a self-reflexive jeu d’esprit in which his smiling face anchors the tone. In a ride around the capital, Panahi likens the skills of a cabbie to those of a director keeping his film on course. There’s nods to other films but it’s an accessible entry-point to his work. Monday 4 December The Real Marigold on Tour The Real Marigold on Tour BBC One, 9.00pm; Scotland, 10.45pm After two series inwhich celebrities of pensionable age ventured to India to assess its potential as a retirement destination, some of the same stars of The Real Marigold Hotel travel to China and, next week, Cuba, for a taste of life there for the elderly (or for elderly people of certain means, at least). Miriam Margolyes, Rosemary Shrager, Bobby George and Wayne Sleep are the quartet wrangled to the capital of Sichuan Province, Chengdu, in a nation with 230 million over the age of 60. First impressions are dismayingly stereotypical – crazy traffic, linguistic entanglements, unenticing cuisine – but matters improve as they become more adventurous. Following a revelatory railway journey, they reach a country retreat and a Giant Panda sanctuary that proves transformative for some. After the poignancy and charm of the first two series proper, Real Marigold on Tour is a little underwhelming. The personality clashes are lacking and genuine insights are thin on the ground; if anything, there’s a slight jadedness to the whole enterprise. But the celebrities are by and large gracious guests and a pleasure to spend time with, for all their gleefully displayed foibles. Gabriel Tate Armchair Detectives BBC One, 2.15pm Susan Calman’s featherlight but entertaining take on Cluedo continues, as a team of amateur sleuths bid to solve the murder of a teacher in the town of Mortcliff. GT The Hairy Bikers Home for Christmas BBC One, 3.45pm Dave Myers and Si King are among the first television chefs of the year to jump on the festive bandwagon, beginning this new series with a few recipes for alternative Christmas treats: Austrian Linzertorte, roast goose and hazelnut chocolate brownie. GT Action Woman of the Year Awards BT Sport 2, 7.30pm Clare Balding hosts the fifth annual ceremony celebrating women in sport, with Wimbledon semi-finalist Johanna Konta and England footballer Jodie Taylor among the nominees for the night’s big award. GT Employable Me BBC Two, 9.00pm Two young people, one with cerebral palsy and the other with a visual impairment, seek the help of psychologist Nancy Doyle to gain the confidence to re-enter the jobs market after difficult past experiences. This is another stirring instalment in the award-winning documentary series. GT The Art that Made Mexico: Paradise, Power and Prayers BBC Four, 9.00pm In the first of a three-part documentary series, artist Alinka Echeverria examines the geographical forces that have shaped Mexican art, and in particular the different perspectives taken on the nation’s landscape from the Spanish Conquest of the 16th century through to independence in 1900. GT Concorde: Designing the Dream Channel 5, 9.00pm The Anglo-French venture beat the Soviets and Americans, at the peak of their Cold War rivalry, to build the first supersonic passenger airliner. This accessible, enjoyable two-part documentary traces the unlikely success story with the help of key players including Michael Heseltine. GT Edgar Allen Poe: Buried Alive PBS America, 9.00pm Kathleen Turner and Denis O’Hare are several cuts above this usual reconstruction hacks in this imaginative film exploring the troubled life and startling work of one of American literature’s most disturbing talents. GT The Untouchables (1987) ★★★★☆ Sky Cinema Greats, 8.00pm Brian De Palma’s gripping Prohibition-era crime drama, based (loosely) on the memoirs of FBI agent Eliot Ness (Kevin Costner), follows Ness’s attempts to stop the ruthless mobster Al Capone (Robert De Niro, gaining 30 pounds for the role) and his gang of suave cronies. Luckily he also has incorruptible Irish cop Jimmy Malone, played by an Oscar-winning Sean Connery, on his side. The Maze Runner (2014) ★★★★☆ Film4, 9.00pm A group of teenage boys live in a meadow at the heart of a giant labyrinth: no one knows why they’re there, or what lies beyond the maze’s shifting walls, until the arrival of 16-year-old Thomas (Dylan O’Brien) precipitates a push for freedom. This lean, tense adaptation of James Dashner’s sci-fi series makes good on its wildly intriguing premise and has more than a hint of Lord of the Flies. Live and Let Die (1973) ★★★☆☆ ITV4, 9.00pm James Bond (Roger Moore) battles one of his more extraordinary opponents, Kananga (Yaphet Kotto), a Caribbean criminal mastermind masquerading as a Harlem drug baron. The film was given lukewarm reviews on its release, but this is Moore-era Bond at its preposterous best. Highlights include 007’s voodoo snake ordeal and a thrilling speedboat chase through New Orleans. Tuesday 5 December Finding Me A Family: - Jo and Mark Find Me a Family Channel 4, 9.00pm Having started in the US, adoption activity days began in the UK six years ago with the idea of allowing potential parents to meet children waiting to be adopted. But many have also been concerned that the events were little more than “beauty pageants” that would make the children feel rejected if they weren’t chosen (traditionally children are matched via written descriptions and photos). This rewarding documentary follows an event in the Midlands organised by the charity Coram. With more than 2,000 children on the adoption register in the UK, it’s clear from this heart-tugging film that every option is worth exploring ­­­­­– and the days are now seen as a success with one in four of the children being adopted. It follows 13 prospective adopters (who are advised “not cry in front of the kids”) and 10 children – and their remarkable foster carers – as they meet at a jungle-themed party. Among them are six-year-old Demi and her three younger brothers (sibling groups are more difficult to place – so this may be their last chance of remaining together), and Mark and Jo, who have six children of their own but feel that “If we’ve got it to offer, why can’t we offer it to children that need it?” SH Kirstie’s Handmade Christmas Channel 4, 8.00pm How you do make sure your Christmas presents, food and decorations “outstrip the smuggest Instagrammer”? Kirstie Allsopp has some suggestions as she shows how to make everything from “schmaltzy, upcycled” diorama tree baubles to miniature Danish cakes. SH The A Word BBC One, 9.00pm In the penultimate episode of Peter Bowker’s skilful and well-rounded drama, Paul (Lee Ingleby) has issues with a video made about his son (Max Vento) by his ex-sister-in-law, nurse Nicola (Vinette Robinson) which attempts to show the spectrum of his autism. SH Invasion! With Sam Willis BBC Four, 9.00pm In historian Sam Willis’s entertaining three-parter, he explores the battles for Britain over the millennia from the Romans, Saxons and Vikings to the “ones you’ve heard of”. It’s a story of myth, reality, climate change and DNA allied to a question of whether there has ever been a “true British people”. Willis begins with the farming invasion 6,000 years ago. SH David Jason’s Secret Service More4, 9.00pm The world evoked by John Buchan, John le Carré and Len Deighton is examined by actor and espionage enthusiast David Jason in this new three-part series about real-life spooks and spies. In the opener, Jason looks back to the beginnings of the British Secret Service in the early 20th century, learning of undercover missions and crack spies. He hears too of the role of a maverick spymaster during the First World War and the Belgian refugees who were Britain’s first secret agents. SH Motherland BBC Two, 10.00pm; NI, 11.15pm Trying to win a coveting spot in a school-run car pool, the rights and wrongs of potpourri and a revelation about a threesome are all thrown into the mix in this episode of this bitingly observant series. As ever, put-upon mother Julia (Anna Maxwell Martin) is at the forefront. Extraordinary Teens: My Gay Life Channel 4, 10.00pm Billy, who realised he was gay at the age of seven, began documenting his life after attending Gay Pride in Brighton as Lady Gaga when he was 11. Six years later, this resulting documentary is a revealing insight into the highs and lows of growing up in Billy’s world. SH The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (1970) ★★★★☆ TCM, 6.30pm English actor Robert Stephens makes a louche, witty Holmes, Colin Blakely a delightful Watson while Geneviève Page adds a tingle of sex appeal as an Irene Adler-like femme fatale to whom the great consulting detective becomes dangerously attracted. Billy Wilder’s endearing film, ostensibly a parody, is seen by many as an important influence on the BBC’s Sherlock series. The Choir (2014) ★★★☆☆ Film4, 6.55pm Dustin Hoffman gives a wonderfully minor-key performance as a tough-love choirmaster in François Girard’s affecting drama. It’s a triumph-over-adversity picture, the adversity being the disadvantaged background of a gifted 11-year-old called Stet (newcomer Garrett Wareing), whose alcoholic single mother in Odessa, Texas dies in a first-reel car crash. Eddie Izzard and Kathy Bates co-star. Bullitt (1968) ★★★☆☆ ITV4, 11.35pm This is the film that made Steve McQueen a superstar and revolutionised the car chase with its 10-minute split-screen, edge-of-your-seat race through San Francisco. McQueen plays hard-nosed, icy-cool cop Frank Bullitt, who is assigned to protect Mafia informant Johnny Ross (Pat Renella), until a pair of hit men scupper his plans. The final pursuit at the airport inspired a similar sequence in Michael Mann’s Heat. Wednesday 6 December Paul Anderson in 'Peaky Blinders' Peaky Blinders BBC Two, 9.00pm We’re midway through the fourth series and Peaky Blinders seems set on going down the path of self-parody, such is the high tide of blood, violence and criminality that it’s unleashed so far. Gore-spattered, finely choreographed excess, however, has always been a large part of its appeal, and this series’ addition of a to-the-death vendetta with Italian-American mafiosi on the mean streets of Birmingham certainly allows such excess to be delivered by the bucketload. If Adrien Brody, channelling the mumbling ghost of Don Corleone in his portrayal of the toothpick-sucking mafia boss Luca Changretta, teeters on the brink of pantomime, at least the devil’s deal that he brokered with Polly (Helen McCrory) in last week’s climactic moments captured the spine-tingling shiver of betrayal that it needed to convince. That’s where this week’s action-packed episode picks up, with the Shelby gang breaking out the weaponry again ahead of another suspected ambush, while Tommy’s (Cillian Murphy) efforts to find a regular bedmate focus on May Carleton (Charlotte Riley). And his new sideline as a boxing promoter, prompts the reappearance of old rival Alfie Solomons (Tom Hardy). Gerard O’Donovan Mary Berry’s Country House Secrets BBC One, 8.00pm On her third stately home excursion Mary Berry visits Powderham Castle, Devon, to spend time with a recently moved in family reinventing their family seat for the 21st century, and to cook up some mouthwatering woodland-inspired treats for a magical Midsummer’s Eve party. GO The Secret Life of the Zoo Channel 4, 8.00pm One of Chester’s onagers (or wild asses, if you prefer) gets over-excited when, after two years waiting, he’s allowed near the females during mating season. And turtle Charlie is showing signs of stress despite his seemingly leisurely pace of life. GO Machines of War Yesterday, 8.00pm The first in a new three-part series unpicking some of the most advanced military hardware on the planet explores the technology behind the devastatingly deadly Tomahawk Cruise missile. It’s a weapon that, after decades on the design bench, has become the West’s remote weapon of choice, capable of striking targets up to 2,500 kilometres away with terrifying accuracy. GO The Apprentice BBC One, 9.00pm It’s the candidates’ last chance to impress before next week’s terrifying interview round. And what an opportunity to shine, when they’re asked to organise a high-end catwalk show and come up with a cover feature to show off the work of up-and-coming fashion designers. GO The Channel: The World’s Busiest Waterway Channel 4, 9.00pm It’s not so much life on the ocean wave as under the seabed in this episode focusing on the complex work of the engineers responsible for keeping rail traffic moving through the Channel Tunnel safely and efficiently. GO Dian Fossey: Secrets in the Mist National Geographic, 9.00pm Pieced together from Dian Fossey’s own writings and over 40 hours of film footage, this terrific documentary looks back over the life and legacy of the dedicated American primatologist and conservationist who did so much – even to the point of being murdered – to save the Rwandan mountain gorilla from extinction. Fossey’s words are voiced by Sigourney Weaver, who brought her work to prominence in the award-winning 1988 film Gorillas in the Mist. GO Champions League Football: Liverpool v Spartak Moscow BT Sport 2, 7.45pm Liverpool and Spartak Moscow go head to head with a place in the Champions League knockout stages up for grabs. Liverpool have the advantage, knowing that they only need one point to qualify from Group E and that victory will guarantee them the top spot, regardless of how Sevilla get on against Maribor. Spartak must go all out for the win and despite the loss of Russian international Dmitri Kombarov, Massimo Carrera’s side will be buoyed by a gutsy victory over Zenit which extended their unbeaten run to 11 matches. CM Prometheus (2012) ★★★★☆ E4, 9.00pm Ridley Scott finds ways to push a genre into queasy new places with this majestic, lime-splattered, blood-spurting science-fiction adventure – a prequel to his 1979 Alien. After discovering cave paintings which point to a location in space, archaeologists Shaw (Noomi Rapace) and Holloway (Logan Marshall-Green) lead a mission to discover our ancestors. Michael Fassbender co-stars as an enigmatic android. Legally Blonde (2001) ★★★★☆ 5STAR, 11.00pm This was the moment that Reese Witherspoon entered global consciousness, and no amount of Oscar-winning turns will separate her from ditsy blonde sorority girl Elle Woods. Of course, Elle isn’t really ditsy, she turns out to be a legal eagle, which is the whole point of Australian director Robert Luketic’s first film: the revelatory observation that blondes can also have brains. The dialogue is fabulously sharp-edged. Boy (2010) ★★★★☆ Film4, 11.20pm New Zealand’s Taika Waititi has just directed Hollywood blockbuster Thor: Ragnarok, but this tender coming-of-age comedy was the indie debut that cemented his reputation for being a smart and funny talent. Set in 1984, it follows Boy (James Rolleston), an 11-year-old dreamer in a deprived rural community who worships his criminal father (Waititi) and imagines that he is a close relation of his other hero, Michael Jackson. Thursday 7 December 'Catching a Killer' Catching a Killer: A Bullet Through The Window Channel 4, 9.00pm The most striking thing about Catching a Killer, Channel 4’s ongoing look at how police murder and missing persons investigations work, is the level of access involved. This film follows the fallout from the death of 19-year-old Suhaib Mohammed. It begins with the terrified 999 call stating “My friend just got shot” and ends with the eventual arrest of his killers. Along the way a complex story emerges of a naive teenager who drifted away from his family and whose death was a terrible case of being in the wrong place with the wrong people. It’s Senior Investigating Officer Mike Lynch’s last case before retirement and one he’s therefore doubly determined to solve, but as the investigation continues so his quiet fury over the way in which the dead teenager’s death is dismissed as just another gang death increases. As always though, it is the testimony of the victim’s family which lingers longest. “We knew he’d become more distant, more private, more closed off but I don’t think we realised he was hanging with the wrong people,” says his sister quietly. His devastated father simply notes: “His heart was very soft… he had big dreams.” Sarah Hughes Ross Noble: Off Road Dave, 8.00pm As fans of his previous Dave series (Ross Noble Freewheeling) can tell you, the comedian is a true petrolhead. However, even the enthusiastic Noble might have bitten off more than he can chew this time as he attempts the Scottish Six Days Trial, an event where the world’s best motorbike riders race 100 miles every day across unforgiving terrain. SH Love, Lies & Records BBC One, 9.00pm Kay Mellor’s enjoyable drama continues with Judy (Rebecca Front) sending Rob (Adrian Bower) a video of his fiancé Kate’s (Ashley Jensen) “moment of madness” with Rick (Kenny Doughty) – but can Kate get to it first? SH Blitz: The Bombs That Changed Britain BBC Two, 9.00pm This week’s focus is Scotland, where a series of Luftwaffe raids over three nights in March 1941 devastated a community, killing 528 people, including 15 members of the same family. For the tightknit society of shipbuilders and factory workers, the aftermath was devastating; many left Clydebank, never to return. SH Live at the Apollo BBC Two, 10.00pm Our host is the sharp, smart and amiable Nish Kumar. He’s joined by the laid-back Irish comic David O’Doherty and rising star Luisa Omielan, who recently rewrote her whole act in the light of her mother’s death from cancer. SH When Rock Arrived in North Korea: Liberation Day: Storyville BBC Four, 11.00pm This hugely entertaining look at how Slovenian art rockers Laibach became the first Western band to play in North Korea works largely because of the eccentric Norwegian director Morten Traavik’s bureaucrat-wrangling skills. The band themselves prove elusive, although the concert footage hammers home just how odd the occasion was. “There are all kinds of music – now I know there’s this kind of music too,” notes one bemused attendee. SH Born to Be Free: Saving Russia’s Whales Channel 4, 11.25pm No documentary is likely to make you angrier this week than Gayane Petrosyan’s bleak and brilliant film about the trade in Beluga whales. She uncovers the terrible fates of 18 belugas bought to Utrish Marine Station to be sold to aquariums across the world. SH Rugby Union: Varsity Match: Oxford University v Cambridge University Thursday, BBC Two, 2.45pm The 136th staging of the annual contest between the two universities takes place at Twickenham. Cambridge prevailed last year to end Oxford’s record-breaking six-year winning streak, and have the superior head-to-head record with 62 wins to their opponents’ 59. The match kicks off at 3.00pm. SH Austin Powers: The Spy Who S*****d Me (1999) ★★★☆☆ Comedy Central, 9.00pm The successful franchise remains nothing more than daft entertainment, but its puerile jokes and cultural referencing still manage to elicit laughs. The “groovy” spy with the wonky teeth (Mike Myers) has his mojo stolen by his arch nemesis Dr Evil (also Myers) and must travel back in time to the swinging Sixties to get it back. Black Sea (2014) ★★★☆☆ Film4, 9.00pm Written by Dennis Kelly (who co-wrote the musical Matilda) and starring Jude Law, this submarine thriller about a hunt for Nazi gold in a long-lost U-boat is less than the sum of its parts. However, a host of decent character actors – the best of whom, David Threlfall, steals the show – keep things buoyant and the set piece outside the sub, involving aquatic spacesuits and bars of gold, is pulse-pinging. 16 Blocks (2006) ★★★☆☆ ITV4, 11.35pm Steered brilliantly by director Richard Donner (Superman, The Goonies) Bruce Willis plays Jack Mosley, a detective who’s assigned to escort prisoner Eddie Bunker (Mos Def) to a Grand Jury hearing in this frantic buddy-action film. This may sound simple, but Mosley’s colleagues don’t want Bunker to make it – because he’s a witness in a police corruption case that could bring their worlds crashing down. Friday 8 December Claire Foy in 'The Crown' The Crown Netflix, from today Expectations could hardly be higher for the return of Netflix’s most lavish series. Although the spectacle and horror of the war have passed, the era of Anthony Eden and Harold McMillan is arguably more intriguing for being less frequently dramatised, and Peter Morgan explores the hypocrisies and compromises inherent in the politics of a nation whose global influence is in decline. Anton Lesser makes a ruthless, discreet McMillan, while Jeremy Northam is once again superb as Eden, a man not low on self-confidence yet forced to face his limitations as the Suez Crisis sees him outmanoeuvred. But the focal point of course is the royal family, and specifically the relationship between Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip: fundamentally solid in its early years, but now subject to considerable stress and strain as the couple drift apart over niggling doubts and suspected betrayals. Claire Foy and Matt Smith are magnificent in the lead roles, rising to the challenges of Morgan’s script to make plausible his educated guesswork and speculations over long-rumoured private affairs. The blend of spectacle and attention to detail remains striking. Gabriel Tate The Grand Tour Amazon Prime Video, from today Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May return for a second go-round of megastar guests, big-budget stunts in exotic locales, and parochial studio chat. The series opens with Ricky Wilson v David Hasselhoff in new segment Celebrity Face Off, and a comparison of a Lamborghini, a hybrid Honda and an electric supercar in a hill-climb race that – as anyone who recalls the headlines from earlier this year will know – goes horribly wrong. GT Judge Rinder’s Crown Court ITV, 8.00pm Two daytime television classics, one ancient and one modern, collide in this bizarre two-parter which sees Judge Robert Rinder, mediator of petty domestic disputes, presiding over a fictional case of arsenic poisoning. As per the original Crown Court, the jurors are members of the public. GT Jamie and Jimmy’s Friday Night Feast Channel 4, 8.00pm The chefs meet a childhood hero as Mark Hamill, soon to return to cinemas as Luke Skywalker, joins them to learn about making perfect roast beef and Yorkshire puddings, plus a Caesar salad and a seafood feast. GT Brunel: the Man Who Built Britain Channel 5, 8.00pm A giant of the Industrial Revolution, Isambard Kingdom Brunel had a curious private life to match his towering professional achievements. The ever-reliable Rob Bell begins his two-part profile with Brunel’s first major project, the Thames Tunnel. GT The Year in Music 2017 BBC Two, 9.00pm The BBC Music Awards follow in the footsteps of BBC Sports Personality of the Year and incorporate a review of the year into the bargain. Here, Claudia Winkelman and Clara Amfo look back on the past 12 months with contributors including Stormzy, Nile Rodgers and Liam Gallagher. GT Classic Album: American Pie: Don McLean BBC Four, 9.00pm McLean’s sophomore album is these days less venerated than other landmarks of the era (Blue, Tapestry, After the Goldrush); it is perhaps overshadowed by its monumental title song whose allusive, elusive lyrics offered an alternate history of rock ’n’ roll and eulogy for the hippy dream. Yet there was always more to it, as this diligent documentary asserts. GT Prisoners (2013) ★★★☆☆ More4, 9.00pm This drama, which centres on the abduction of two girls, is harrowing but it succeeds in sustaining its tension to the end. Hugh Jackman is cast into darkness when his six-year-old daughter is kidnapped. Jake Gyllenhaal is the detective in charge of the case, and the pair lock horns early on. What we are then presented with is a criminal puzzle and a very committed cast, which also includes Terrence Howard. Legend (2015) ★★★☆☆ Film4, 9.00pm Tom Hardy gives a solid, convincing performance as east London gangster Reggie Kray but his caricatured portrayal of twin brother Ronnie lets him down, and his inconsistent performance leads to an entertaining though muddled film. Emily Browning, however, gives just the right mix of defiance and despair as Frances Shea, Reggie’s put-upon wife. Watch out for some particularly gory scenes. Dead Calm (1989) ★★★☆☆ W, 9.00pm In her first big film role, Nicole Kidman displays pluck and vulnerability as Rae Ingram, a woman who loses her infant son in a car accident, and consents to a long recovery at sea, on a luxury yacht called the Saracen. Her husband John (Sam Neill) is an experienced naval officer and stand-up guy, and though he knows banishing Rae’s guilt and grief is going to be tough, he has no idea what shock therapy fate has in mind. Television previewers Toby Dantzic, Catherine Gee, Simon Horsford, Sarah Hughes, Clive Morgan, Gerard O'Donovan, Vicki Power, Patrick Smith, Gabriel Tate and Rachel Ward

England are in the World Cup final then. Which one? Rugby of course. The Rugby World Cup. They are, I assure you. Yes, you’re quite right to think that you should have heard about it by now. No, no, not the Rugby Union World Cup, that’s in Japan in 2019. This is the original Rugby World Cup, the Rugby League World Cup. England are playing Australia at the Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane this Saturday and are hoping to get their hands on a trophy they have not won since 1972 (as Great Britain). It’s OK, nobody blames you for not knowing. It is not like there has been an explosion in all forms of media and communication in the interceding 45 years, or a vast commercialisation of all forms of sport and a concomitant redevelopment as a multibillion pound industry that touches the lives of people all round the globe. If that had been the case, there would surely be no reason for being ignorant of the fact that England are in a World Cup final on Saturday. Similarly, there would be no reason for Andy Burnham, the Mayor of Greater Manchester and former Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, to tweet after England’s nail-biting semi-final 20-18 win over Tonga last Saturday, ‘England are in a World Cup final on Saturday. I live in hope that, at some point this week, our media will inform the nation about this.’ It almost goes without saying that Rugby League is a much inferior sport to Rugby Union (an oxymoron right up there with Manchester United, Military Intelligence and, appropriately enough, ‘deafening silence’), or it would receive more attention – that’s how these things work isn’t it? Everything judged according to its merits with the due application of that most self-regarding of myths, the English sense of ‘fair play.’ Thought so. There’s only one thing for it – League has to become more like Union. Here are ten ways it can do that… i. First, and most importantly, improve the catering and corporate facilities. We’ll get to the changes in the actual game presently but this is absolutely vital. If there has to be some kind of sporting event going on the very least one can expect is smoked salmon blinis and quails’ eggs, wine that does not come out of a box and a comfortable seat, facing the pitch if necessary. ii. Once that is sorted we can move onto innovation. It’s got to go. What is the point of staging the first Rugby World Cup in 1954 when someone can simply come along thirty-three years later, after all the heavy-lifting has been done, and appropriate the name? See also, the introduction of floodlit matches on the BBC (1965) and video technology (1996 – five years before Union). iii. Clive Sullivan MBE may well have been the first black captain of any British sporting team – and a World Cup winner – but if we can’t even recognise these achievements with a knighthood what chances have we got? Somebody needs to have a word with the Palace. If squash and fencing can have a Dame each, surely they can spare a couple of Sirs for our league-playing boys. iv. This quick, open play nonsense has to be stopped. It’s all very well putting on a spectacle of athleticism and handling technique for the paying public and the audiences at home, but at school level when are the fat kids going to get a chance for a breather? v. Which brings us nicely on to lineouts. These need to be introduced to break up play as soon as possible. There is no finer sight in world sport than seeing a very tall man being thrust into the air by way of upward momentum on his buttocks provided by his teammates as he attempts to make contact with an oval ball. Lineouts would also provide ample time to check text messages and answer important work emails. vi. Scrums, of course, will have to be done properly from now on. Who needs an instantaneous attacking platform when valuable minutes, hours even, can be wasted watching scrums collapse and reset? We should actually go further here and, at international level, institute a five scrum rule that means if a minor infringement is worth punishing in the first place, it’s almost certainly worth punishing five times. Referees could be spared the task of guessing what has just gone on by the introduction of a tombola. This could obviously be sponsored, elegantly but extravagantly, to generate yet further revenue. vii. If that is not enough to slow the game down, let’s open it up to ponderous carbohydrate junkies at the schoolboy and amateur levels and build upon the almost sexual stop-start frisson that is the hallmark of Union. We can do this by throwing another four players on the pitch just to generally get in the way and over-complicate matters. viii. The current points system is obviously not fit for purpose. The kicking game is being woefully neglected; reverting to the old pre-1948 Union levels of four points for a drop goal might not even be sufficient. It will have to be 10 points from now on and renamed a ‘Jonny’. A working party can look at the possibility of introducing a life-size Subbuteo corner-taker figure to replace specialist players as this will free up training time to practise lineouts and scrums. ix. With the corporate hospitality and rules of the game sorted, we can now think about those who pay to watch the game. The obvious thing to do here is to leave the passionate, knowledgeable and loyal sporting heartland of Northern England and focus attention on thriving metropolitan areas like Leicester and Northampton or, more obviously, wherever there is a Range Rover dealership and a fondness for novelty socks. x. Finally, forget all ideas about naming the World Cup trophy after Paul Barrière, a World War II French resistance hero who came up with the idea of a rugby world cup in the first place and, instead, name it after an acknowledged cheat who couldn’t play football properly. And if all that lot doesn’t get us some media exposure, I don’t know what will. It already has? Oh.

The ball ricochets as Australia's prop Greg Holmes (L) and Scotland's flanker John Hardie challenge for it, leading to a penalty awarded to Australia towards the end of a quarter final match of the 2015 Rugby World Cup between Australia and Scotland at Twickenham stadium, southwest London, on October 18, 2015. AFP PHOTO / GABRIEL BOUYS RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE, NO USE IN LIVE MATCH TRACKING SERVICES, TO BE USED AS NON-SEQUENTIAL STILLSThe ball ricochets as Australia's prop Greg Holmes (L) and Scotland's flanker John Hardie challenge for it, leading to a penalty awarded to Australia towards the end of a quarter final match of the 2015 Rugby World Cup between Australia and Scotland at Twickenham stadium, southwest London, on October 18, 2015. AFP PHOTO / GABRIEL BOUYS RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE, NO USE IN LIVE MATCH TRACKING SERVICES, TO BE USED AS NON-SEQUENTIAL STILLS (AFP Photo/GABRIEL BOUYS)

Australia's Sekope Kepu, number 3 at centre, is shown a red card during the game against Scotland, during their Autumn International rugby union match at Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh, Scotland, Saturday Nov. 25, 2017. (Andrew Milligan/PA via AP)

Scotland's fly-half Finn Russell kicks a conversion during the autumn international rugby union test match between Scotland and Australia at Murrayfield stadium in Edinburgh on November 25, 2017. (AFP Photo/Andy BUCHANAN)

Rugby Union - Australia's Kepu banned over shoulder charge

Australia's prop Sekope Kepu (L) leaves the field having been sent off during the autumn international rugby union test match between Scotland and Australia at Murrayfield stadium in Edinburgh on November 25, 2017. (AFP Photo/Andy BUCHANAN)

Rugby Union - RugbyU: Tests return to Gold Coast in 2018

Australia's wing Marika Koroibete is tackled by Scotland's flanker John Barclay (L) and Scotland's lock Jonny Gray (R) during the autumn international rugby union test match between Scotland and Australia at Murrayfield stadium in Edinburgh on November 25, 2017. (AFP Photo/Andy BUCHANAN)